Thanks to donations left in churches at Ebrington, Chipping Campden, Blockley and Bourton on the Hill, I was able to take several bags and boxes of candles and tins down to Swindon this month. While there she was shown around the small warehouse unit that the Swindon Humanitarian Aid Partnership operates from and met two of the volunteers, Carol from Swindon and Svitlana from Ukraine. Svitlana said that it helps her to feel she is doing something for her country. 

The candles are a small part of what is loaded into empty trucks returning to Ukraine. I saw a couple of mobility scooters, first aid equipment, medicines, nappies, boxes of clothes and donated gifts for children. They had wrapped well over a thousand Christmas presents that week. The most moving thing was the huge pile of walking frames, drawing attention to the cost of the war to so many people who have been injured in the fighting and bombing. Our candles are but a drop in the ocean but every bit helps bring a little relief. We will do another collection in the new year.