Aid on the way after Strath’s mercy mission
Lorries bound for Poland after massive effort
When Marls Humphries, who lives near Gilmerton, originally put out feelers to see how the people of Strathearn could help refugees from Ukraine she did not imagine that just over a week later a lorry- load of aid would be making its way from Perthshire to the stricken country’s Polish border.
Marls’ question on the Crieff and Strathearn Friendships Facebook page led to her teaming up with Kasia Guzouska of ZHP – the Polish Scout group in Perth – and a major operation began to sort, categorise, weigh and pack the donations that had begun to flood in.
According to the United Nations on Tuesday, more than two million people have fled Ukraine since Putin’s forces invaded. Poland has seen the largest influx of refugees, with in excess of one million people seeking sanctuary within its border so far.
Collection centres were set up throughout the Strath and at Polish shops and churches in Perth.
A fleet of horse boxes supplied by members of Strathearn Pony Club was instrumental in transporting donations from the drop-off points to a warehouse at Errol Airfield supplied by Morris Leslie Auctions.
More than 200 volunteers have been working there over the past week, and four HGVs packed with donations have already made their way to Poland.
ZHP’s associations with counterparts at the border are ensuring that the donations are distributed appropriately by local Polish charities working closely with the Red Cross and other charities on the frontline.
The first consignment from the warehouse left on Wednesday last week, arriving at its destination 24 hours later. By Friday, two lorryloads were heading towards the border with Ukraine.
And, on Sunday afternoon, the local humanitarian effort saw a further 22 pallets of warm clothes, medications, food, sanitary products and pet food get on their way.
Marls described the operation as like “having to set up an Amazon warehouse in a week”.
Speaking to the Herald on Tuesday, she said: “I think it was about nine days ago that I was looking at the news and thinking this is horrendous, what can we do? So I put up a post on the Crieff and Strathearn Friendships page to see if anyone had any practical ideas and then Aga, who is a really nice Polish lady, shared a post from the Polish Scouts Association in Perth.
“There is an amazing lady there – Kasia – who did a similar thing asking for donations of warm clothes and toiletries etc and from just my local friends in Crieff, Comrie and Muthill we had about six or seven horse lorries full.
“We dropped the first load off at the warehouse last Tuesday [March 1] and, with Kasia’s post in Perth, we ended up with all the libraries and Polish shops taking in donations as well.
“We haven’t weighed it all but it’s tonnes and tonnes of things. If
we hadn’t had all the volunteers we would just be sitting with a warehouse full of stuff.
“It all happened so quickly. Donations got dropped off and we had to sort them all out.
“The Polish community in Poland has been amazing.
“We have sent out 300 warm waterproof clothes for children and adults that went out on the first shipment. The next thing was medicine and first aid and toiletries which have gone out.
“One volunteer has developed a skill for getting four duvets into a vacuum bag and she managed to pack one pallet with 120 duvets, which is quite an art, and these left on Sunday.
“Kaisa coordinates the Polish side of things with the Polish Scouts and Polish churches and Polish haulage companies.
“None of this would have happened if it hadn’t been for Morris Leslie, who owns the car auction in Errol. He has also been amazing. He’s one of these people who makes things happen and he has given us five containers that we have put the remaining clothes in that we have sorted out. If refugees are allowed to come to Perthshire then we will be able to support them.”
Marls praised everyone involved in the mammoth task,
including Comrie community councillor Lindsay Brown for his coordination skills and Sarah Mackintosh for her “Trojan” efforts in the warehouse, everyone who has donated and volunteered, members of Strathearn Pony Club, Crieff Co-op, the Commercial Inn in Muthill, the Ancaster Arms in Comrie, Comrie Scout group, Madderty Village Hall and the Filling Station in Methven.
She continued: “We have also coordinated with a friend of a friend who is setting up an ‘orphanage’ in Poland. There is a big empty building that they are going to convert with beds and mattresses so we have sent over 200 pillows for there.
“We are loosely calling it an ‘orphanage’ but it will probably be for mums on their own with children as well.
“One of the other amazing things, which I hope will work out, is that the lorry that picked up on Sunday is going to drive right into Ukraine so we have prioritised different items for that.
“The other lorries have focused on items for women and children but the one that left on Sunday took mostly medicines and camping equipment for the men left in Ukraine.”