It’s Thanksgiving evening and I will be leaving Przemysl to meet my son in Prague tomorrow. He and his wife moved to Salzburg in March, so I’m really excited to see him. Nonetheless, I have a lot of mixed emotions about leaving when there is so much that still needs to be done here at Hope Foundation’s Shelter.
The shelter is very basic. It’s just a giant open warehouse space. When I arrived a week ago kitchen cabinets had just been installed, but there was no place yet to sit down to eat. There were two hot plates and a couple of toaster ovens that were setup on a makeshift table using shared electrical outlets, with the volunteer staff continuously explaining to those arriving that the circuits would be overloaded if those using the appliances were not careful. The fear of a fire because of a lack of understanding that you couldn’t use all four appliances at the same time was real. For this reason, some of your donations were used to purchase electrical cable and outlets so that Steven Oxley, a volunteer from the UK who was an electrician was able to run wiring for an extra electric heater, a freezer, lighting, cooking and a cell phone charging station.
Earlier in the week an estate auctioneer donated some old tables & chairs, so we were able to create a dining area. There were donated dishes and flatware dropped off in boxes that I took back to my apartment to wash, as it was easier than using a bucket and the bathroom sink. There were some interesting and unusual cooking utensils that I’ve never seen in the States, which turned into a game of “what is THIS thing?”
What I saw on the news while still in the States was horrendous, and yet, what I’ve seen since being here is so much worse than the news is reporting. This is not World of Warcraft – this is war. When it is in your backyard, it touches everything. There are so many everyday normalcies that are no longer normal and routine. I have witnessed human beings in Ukraine drinking dirty water from puddles. They are cutting down trees in what was a residential neighborhood or a park in order to keep from literally F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G to death. They are dependent on the goodness of others to simply make it to the next day or even to the next hour. There are children who are orphaned and alone, there are elderly and disabled whose family has been killed. They are all afraid to stay, yet have no way to leave and no place to go.
This shelter is a temporary place, but an important one. When folks arrive they have nothing but their broken past in tow and perhaps the hope that this isn’t the end. I’m not sure that I would be able to hold onto that little bit of hope, but I do know they need to reach for it.
I am asking you to help me continue to help. What we are doing here has a direct and immediate life saving impact. That means food, water, warm clothes to prevent freezing to death – truly the most very basic needs we all have as human beings.
There are lots of ways to donate, but know that all monies no matter how they are received will be used for beds and mattresses and other supplies – including a new sink I purchased yesterday and electrical equipment to allow more more cooking area at the Hope Organization’s Shelter. To make your donations tax deductible, you can make them through Volunteer Housing Initiative. You will have the opportunity to add a comment to tell them you want your funds to go toward this effort.
Or, you can donate directly to me via Venmo to @MtgMistress or by PayPal through this site.