UKRAINE CHRISTMAS SHOE BOX APPEAL
After the success of last years fundraiser - thank you again to everyone - and successfully raising £61,000 which involved 8 trucks full of humanitarian aid being sent to the Ukraine, we are working with an incredible funder this year to spread a little joy to the heroes holding the front line of the Ukraine. Deadline 22nd Novemeber.
Join us in sending shoebox care packages to the men and woman on the front line and in military hospitals - a little can mean a lot!
This Christmas we would like to support the soldiers of the Ukrainian army, one in five of whom, are women. Holding out in trenches on the front, they live in mud, which gets into their clothes, food, equipment. It seeps through their boots, soaks their clothes, clings to their skin. In it, they sleep, freeze, die.
Far from home, Christmas is just another day at work for them, but you could change that, by showing the men and woman of the front line and military hospitals that they are not forgotten and that we support them.
‘We sleep on crates in unbelievable cramped conditions in the backs of trucks, and wash in warm water once a month. When it rains—we're wet, when it swamps—we're dirty as hell.’
How can you help?
It may be small but a shoebox can be mighty. Your boxes will go to the front line, and to military hospitals through the organisers well-established logistic channels; where support lorries have been sending food and goods each month over the last year.
There are two locations to send your box:
Our honey farm – Lower Lea Farm, Banbury, OX15 6ET
Village Hall, Shipton on Cherwell, OX5 1JP
DEADLINE 22 NOVEMBER
Due to import laws for humanitarian aid to UA changing on 1 Dec, we need to send all aid out before that date. Please write to shiptonhub20@gmail.com for more details and to opt in.
What might a soldier far from home want for Christmas from you?
Clothing
- Thick/thermal socks
- T-shirts
- Underpants
- Neck warmers
- Warm pull-on hats
- Balaclavas
Health and personal care
- Paracetamol
- Throat sweets
- Plasters/bandages + safety pins
- Toothbrushes + toothpaste
- Shaving foam
- Razors
- Deodorant
- Soap
- Hygiene products
Food items and extras
- Chewing gum
- Sweets/chocolate
- Biscuits/small cakes
- Nuts/dried fruit/nibbles
- Pot Noodles
- Savoury biscuits
- Cola
General
- Playing cards/games
- Batteries,
- Tobacco,
- Lighter,
- Alcohol,
- Water
You might have some other ideas, go for it, these are just suggestions.
The hottest gift items for Christmas 2022 included drones, tablets, generators, binoculars, heat sensors, solar charged power banks and thermal underwear!
We would love you to include a message of support, which you could run through google translate and write in Ukrainian as well as English.
Should I decorate my box? (No bags please).
Your choice, but looking cheerful is good. Please make sure nothing can escape. (Using string to close the box is good, because it means customs can check the contents should they wish to.)