Heatherlands Primary School
Enjoying Learning Together
Ukraine Support
Ukraine support
On Monday 13th June, we invited two special visitors to our Key Stage 2 assembly. Mike and Dave (pictured with Ms Evans) are the two volunteers who drove all of our donations and notes down to the Polish border to deliver to Ukranian refugees. The children prepared some excellent questions to ask about the journey there and back – which Mike and Dave have done twice over the past few months. Mike and Dave funded the journey themselves, even with the increasing petrol prices, and went because they felt strongly that they wanted to do something to help the situation. They were thrilled to hear about the little notes of hope that the Heatherlands children sent with the food and supplies, and said that the Ukranian people would have really appreciated them. After getting the important questions out of the way, (“Did you go to Starbucks on the way? (No!) Where did you go to the toilet?” (Plenty of good service stations, especially in Germany...)) Mike and Dave described how it took them 2 days to get to their destination, and cost them around £1000 per journey in petrol and accommodation. They then explained their experience of visiting the refugee camps on the Polish border. They told us that people fleeing Ukraine were being accommodated in what used to be a holiday camp. Ukranian and Polish teachers were working together to provide some schooling for the children, who were worried about their education. Some lessons were being provided online. Some of the people they met were understandably anxious and scared about the future but were all extremely grateful for the supplies that were being donated by people just like the Heatherlands community. Mike and Dave are planning to do another trip to the Polish border in October, so we all promised to make some more letters, pictures and notes for the Ukranian people. And Mike promised that he would put a big banner on his van saying “HEATHERLANDS PRIMARY SCHOOL”!
