Invasion Day + 117 The war (almost unbelievably in 2022) continues...we are also..
We have not posted for the past two weeks for a combination of reasons, not least of which was the external activity of supporting local Ukrainians now arriving in significant numbers here.
Scarborough is becoming a vey welcoming place for those displaced by war: the town has already hosted many hundreds of Afghan families who manged to escape their country's repressive Taliban dictatorship and continues to do so.
Today we officially launch 'Sunflowers for Ukraine' at Gallery 6 in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, a fundraising evening.
We also launch our 'Voices for Ukraine' project. A book of shared experiences between writers in the UK and writers from Ukraine.
Will anyone come? Will anyone join us? Will anyone write for the new book.
Or is the war fading so fast in our minds under the pressures of life right now that we cannot sustain the momentum of support?
We hope not...we hope people will come. We hope people will use their voice.
The blog has floundered for many reasons but we are still very active. And we will now move to 'Voices for Ukraine'. We are in the process of transposing it into a social media blog but it is proving challenging.
But much goes on in the background.
Each Monday the Ukrainian support group in Scarborough meet under the energy and direction of local solicitor and businessman, Iain Butterworth, and we support and attend this and lend our voice to this great work.
Our efforts to place Ukrainians into work vacancies progresses but we have run up against minimum wage issues. Where the vacancies are, so are transport and the minimum wage issue. Or just above it. It appears that at present it is probably financially sounder for anyone out of work to stay out of work than try to manage the travel and low pay. This is a UK wide issue and we can only advocate.
We feel the need to place the blog into a specific role rather than trying to be generalist and so 'Voices for Ukraine' is our way.
You, our brilliant supporters are the way of help here: We had over fifty regular writers when we are in full swing and so the plan is to produce this second support book from this group. The book will be a full on paperback of writing about Ukraine to be called 'Voices for Ukraine.'
We will be writing to each of you individually over the next few days with a view to matching you up with a Ukrainian 'voice'. If you already have a Ukrainian contact or are a host family then they may wish to be your shared 'voice' for Ukraine.
But we are actively seeking people in the Ukraine to share this journey.
Lina and Lora our two amazing young women from Ukraine will hopefully be two of them.
The format of the book will be fifty ( or more of course if we can encourage this) writers writing about some aspect of joint culture between the two countries of those doing the writing.
'Culture' is an open book of course and covers just about anything and everything. This is culture as in cultural not 'culture' as in some refined, exclusive preserve of just a few. It might be as simple as football, as complex as child care. But a shared view of two worlds shattered by war but not lost if we can help to preserve them.
The voices will be published here and then form chapters in the book where themes emerge.
All proceeds of course will go to Ukraine through our fund.
Please join us in this moving 'Voices for Ukraine' project.
Thank you all.
Hoggy
‘Sunflowers for Ukraine’
Tuesday 21st June 2022
6 pm - 8 pm
Gallery 6
A Fund-Raising Event for ‘Hoggy’s Fund’ supporting Ukrainians affected by the war.
Hello everyone,
This is Hoggy, a local writer and editor running a small local publishing outfit.
The terrible war in Ukraine has prompted us to sponsor and publish a book of poems and prose to raise funds to support as many Ukrainian people as we can.
We are launching the book at ‘Gallery 6’ on Tuesday 21st June; a ‘drop in’ evening.
We are currently supporting thirteen Ukrainian people through ‘Hoggy’s Fund’, a special fund with five trustees set up by us for the purpose. We would like to do more.
Lina and Lora’s Story
Lina and Lora are sisters from Kharkiv who we are supporting financially and through hope. Lora has managed to reach Turkey with her grandmother and is relatively safe. She is twenty and is hoping to become a dance choreographer.
Lina is a composer and musician. She is just sixteen and a carer for her grandmother. Lina has so far consistently refused to leave Kharkiv and her grandmother who is frail. The girls have seen their street shelled and friends killed. Neither Lina nor Lora have been able to work since the war started and we are sending them small but regular supplies of money for food.
You can see their very moving stories and see them in action, singing and dancing on our internet blog: www.hoggytheyimp.com
Thank you to everyone: Please drop in at Gallery 6! Tuesday 21st June 6 -8 pm.
Hoggy
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