Ayrshire families have vowed to provide refuge to children stranded in Ukraine – should they have to flee the war-torn country.
Charity volunteers for Chernobyl Children's Lifeline (Ayrshire Link) are fearing the worst for kids who are now in the firing line from Russian attacks – after years spent welcoming them on special trips to Ayrshire.
The youngsters who were once allowed to escape to Scotland away from dangerous levels of radiation are now 'hiding in cellars' as they avoid the conflict raging on in their communities.
The children come from families who stay just hours away from the site of the horrific nuclear disaster in 1986.
And a selfless network of volunteers have allowed them to spend many happy summers visiting Ayrshire to get away from the constant threat of radiation in the air.
Now that same network who see the children "as one of their own" are ready to help in any way they can after watching on in horror as Russian aggression leads to daily gunfire and airstrikes.
Chief of the Ayrshire branch of the charity, school teacher Michael Lafferty, told Ayrshire Live: “We all know the children and their families very well, we’re all very concerned and worried by what’s happening.
“We bring the kids over here yearly to give them a break – the last two years we’ve been unable to do any trips because of Covid.”
“Everyone is ready to step in and help. We are prepared to look after them, we just want to make sure they are safe.”
Michael, 54, from Saltcoats has been with the charity since 1999 and has visited the town of Korosek in the north of Ukraine where trips to destinations such as Ayrshire are organised.
The school teacher at St Matthew’s Academy in Saltcoats has become a household name in the Ukrainian communities along with his wife Lisa, 54, after making such an impact on the children's lives.
He added: “We have helped change their lives in a positive way. It's not just the children we are worried about but the communities as a whole.
"I am looking on at the news and I can see streets and museums I've visited that are now under threat."
Former South Ayrshire councillor Rita Miller has hosted young girls at her Ayr home on several occasions.
A concerned Rita told Ayrshire Live: “It is very, very worrying.
“The area the Russians are attacking, with some gusto, is near Kyiv – near where these families who have already been victims of the Chernobyl disaster are living.
“It is already quite a disadvantaged area – this just heaps more disadvantages on top of their lives.
“It is a frighteningly dangerous situation that these children are now in.
“They are innocent children who just want a good life and a good education."
Rita, who was a Labour councillor for Ayr North ward, added: “I absolutely want to help in any way I can. I’ve got a spare room if need be, we’ve hosted girls over here before we’d do the same right now to get them out of there.
“We’ve already made a donation to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) that is money that will go directly to helping anyone affected.”
Ayr volunteer Linda Paton, who is vice-chair of the Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline in Ayrshire, says she is ready to use whatever space she can in her home to accommodate children fleeing the war.
Linda, 70, who also volunteers as a driver for Ayrshire Cancer Support, said: “I am more than willing to help out.
“I’ve got a spare room and a very large hall.
“We are all just kind of standing by and waiting to hear what happens next.”
Linda visited Korosten on a trip with Michael and Lisa in 2019 and has told of her disbelief at the crisis the communities are now facing.
She added: “It has just been absolutely horrendous to watch. I was over there in October 2019.
“The people are just so welcoming and friendly – they are just normal people getting on with their lives.
“All I can think of is how they are and how they are coping.
“I keep looking at maps trying to work out where it is most affected but there is so much uncertainty over the situation.
“Over the years you get to know these children. If you are hosting them, they are in your home for four weeks.”
East Ayrshire volunteer Angela McBeath, 63, has been with the charity for 15 years and has been in contact with a Ukrainian family who have stayed with her in the past.
The mum-of-five and gran-of-11 has been in touch with a teenage girl, Lera, who spent time with her family on a previous stay.
Angela, a former classroom assistant at Grange Academy in Kilmarnock, said: “It is just disgusting what is going on, what you are seeing on the news and online.
“For five years we had kids staying, the last time we were unable to have them stay because we are full-time foster parents now.
“But we still got involved and met with some of the children.
“It's a very worthwhile charity, it’s very interesting and you form lasting bonds with these amazing kids.
“You see the good that it does for them and you get to know the children and their families over the years.
“We stayed in touch with one of the families. The past few days they have been saying it has been horrendous.
“It was a younger girl, Lera, who we had over, she’s around 18 now. Their English isn’t great so we have been communicating with emojis, she sent love hearts back to us to thank us for being concerned."
Dennis Vystavkin, chief executive of Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline, has told how he spoke to a Ukrainian mother who was “hiding in her cellar hugging her two children.”
Dennis said: “We look into the human side of hardship and disaster.
“This is the only reason why we have been looking after these families and helping them.
“They are in the hearts and minds of the kind British people, people from Ayrshire who consider the children and families in Ukraine as their true and real members of their own family and they treat them this way.”
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