The overwhelming response to help people fleeing Vladimir Putin’s cold-blooded invasion of Ukraine has given the world reason for hope.
Families across Europe have opened their doors to refugees; charities have raised hundreds of millions; and people with no connection to Eastern Europe have crossed the continent to deliver essential items to families arriving with nothing.
The Homes for Ukraine programme, for instance, allows people and organisations in the UK to offer Ukrainian refugees a place to stay.
Anyone with a room or home available can apply. The scheme is open to those fleeing the war in Ukraine – previously, only Ukrainians with family members already settled in the UK could come to the country. More than 150,000 people have registered interest.
Here we publish just some of the other examples of business people from the East Midlands and the efforts they are making to help:
ALB Group & New Century Windows
Property magnate Arran Bailey, of Nottingham’s ALB Group, and Rob Cassidy, of Mansfield-based New Century Windows, have driven five vans full of aid on a 1,700-mile trip to Poland before driving on to Hungary to buy more supplies.
Originally the team had hoped to deliver the aid to Moldova, because they both felt the 230,000 refugees ending up there had been largely overlooked, but were unable to locate a refugee camp to arrange delivery.
Rob and Arran’s GoFundMe campaign had a target of reaching £5,000, but within 24 hours the campaign had raised £15,000, and by Friday March 18 had topped £25,000.
They have used the money to buy toiletries, blankets, clothing, baby milk, nappies, food and torches.
ALB and New Century Windows paid for all the fuel, tolls, accommodation and other expenses incurred on the trip from their own pockets.
Nottingham designer Paul Smith donated over 3000 items of clothing to their cause.
MHR International
The Nottingham-based HR, payroll and finance experts have donated £10,000-worth of essential items to support The East Midlands Polish Scouting Association’s Ukraine Crisis Appeal.
The business also made a £10,000 donation to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal set up by The British Red Cross.
The firm also coordinated individual donations from its employees, which were collated at the head office ahead of being transported to provide relief for refugees.
Blankets and sleeping bags, toiletries, medical items, clothes and baby supplies were delivered by truck, with the fuel costs also covered by MHR.
Pall-Ex
The Leicestershire-based freight specialist has used its extensive European network to deliver aid to those fleeing into Poland.
It has coordinated the collection of charitable aid in the UK at its central hub in Leicestershire, and then transported it to a new Pall-Ex Poland hub in Łódź.
This service is being donated by Pall-Ex Group’s UK to its Poland partner based in Gdansk, PKS.
From there, the aid is transported to a depot, owned by Pall-Ex Group, in Rzeszow close to the Ukrainian border.
During the first week of the conflict, managing director of Pall-Ex Group’s International Business Units, Mark Steel, travelled to Poland to speak with the team in Łódź.
He said: “Everyone at Pall-Ex Group is united in our efforts to ensure we support those affected by the conflict in Ukraine.”
Oakland International
The food storage and distribution firm, which is based in Redditch, and has operations in Leicestershire, Corby, Dublin, and Worksop, has paid dozens of trucks and drivers to take essential food to the eastern border of Poland.
When the invasion happened Oakland issued a call for support from the UK and Ireland food sector to help.
Oakland International’s Co-Founder and Group CEO, Dean Attwell: “If you are able to support with offers of full pallets or full trucks of food, please email: ukraine@oakland-international.com.”
Maria Szmit
Leicestershire graphic designer and marketing advisor Maria Szmit has headed back to her hometown in Poland to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing there.
Ms Szmit has gone back to Jędrzejów in southern Poland – about three hours from the Ukraine border – after raising funds to buy supplies for desperate families.
The number of refugees who have arrived in Poland stands at around 2 million – more than the total population of the Polish capital Warsaw, which is 1.75 million.
Most have had to flee with the bare minimum, with families having to leave luggage on station platforms to get room on trains.
Atomic Developments
John Granger, who owns Atomic Developments, asked his team to research the best way of collecting aid and delivering it directly to those who need it.
He said that within 24 hours he was inundated with offers of cash, sleeping bags, thermal blankets, nappies, dried foods, sanitary products and medical supplies to take with him.
He and his team took turns driving four work vans through France, Belgium, Holland and Germany to reach their destination at an aid drop-off point in the Polish city of Gdynia, Poland, 60 miles from the Ukrainian border.
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Over the past two weeks the cricket club has been giving half of all pre-season ticket sales to the British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal.
The British Red Cross is among the many international agencies desperately trying to distribute aid and resources to those affected by the Russian bombing campaign.
Barratt Homes
The Barratt Foundation donated £50,000 to the Red Cross to help with the humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.
The foundation is the charitable arm of Leicestershire-headquartered Barratt Developments, parent company of Barratt and David Wilson Homes and commercial property developer Wilson Bowden.
The donation to a national newspaper's Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal will go straight to the Red Cross, a partner of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) charity, which is working inside Ukraine and at its borders to ease the suffering of those caught in the conflict.
De Montfort University
Sacks and boxes full of clothing, medical supplies, food and toiletries have been dispatched to Poland's border following an "overwhelming" amount of donations.
Students and staff from launched an appeal and were able to fill an entire lorry with goods to help those in need in refugee centres on the borders of Ukraine.
The campaign was so successful that after five days, donations had to come to a halt due to the sheer generosity of those involved.
Bardon Truck Park
A lorry park in Coalville is helping stranded Ukrainian drivers while their country is at war.
Bardon Truck Park in Bardon Hill in Leicestershire offers truck drivers from everywhere a place to stop and stay before continuing on their journey, but many drivers from the Ukraine were left with nowhere to go after Russia invaded their country on February 24.
The owner, Brett Parker, 33, offered the drivers a place to stay for free, as well hot food and drinks.
He said some drivers wanted to return home to fight for their country and protect their families.
To support the British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal, click here.
