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Two Rotarians, Roger Byrom and Patrick Farrelly, from Braunton Caen Rotary Club have just returned from Hungary after delivering aid for Ukraine to a Rotary club close to the border. The experience is a fine example of the international family of Rotary working together for the better good.

It all started with a phone call from a friend, an ex-army Chairman of our local branch of the Royal British Legion, Richard Maynard, asking if we were interested in going to Ukraine. We said “yes”, our spouses said “no”. In the event we decided that we should try to raise material donations from our community and take them to Hungary, a country taking refugees but receiving little attention from the media.

Our local church, St Brannock’s, offered the use of its minibus and a long wheelbase Transit van was offered by Steven Bearman, a local plumbers merchant, along with his son-in-law, Jay, an ex Fleet Air Arm firefighter. Local agricultural suppliers, Mole Valley Farmers, funded the hire of another van, driven by Richard’s brother, Troll and a friend Steve.

An exchange of emails with the District Governor of District László Frici Németh in Hungary connected us to the Rotary Club of Kisvarda, a small town lying some 12 miles from the border with Ukraine. This club was already heavily involved in collecting aid and sending it across the border to the Rotary Club of Uzhhorod, a similar distance into Ukraine. Further emails with an English-speaking club member elicited the kind of supplies that were required.

Thus we set up a Facebook page, “Ukraine Braunton Community Response” and produced posters which were distributed across the village detailing the requirements. The response was overwhelming. The local Tesco store was stripped of nappies, baby food and ladies’ hygiene items; members of the community bombarded us with donations, both physical and monetary.

Our aims were:

- to deliver the equipment donated by the community, - to purchase any other items needed to support the refugees, - to help if we could with moving refugees or aid, but without being a burden on our Rotary hosts or the refugee administrative organization.

Travel documentation sorted out, Covid tests registered and an estimated arrival time notified to Kisvarda, the convoy set off. Thirty three hours later we arrived in Kisvarda at 7pm to a reception group of Rotarians waiting to unload the hire van which had to return to the UK the following morning. Accommodation had been arranged for us in a nearby hotel.

The next day some twenty Rotarians, students and helpers were on hand to unload the remaining two vehicles. A human chain was set up to pass packets of nappies , boxes and other items into the warehouse. We then set about loading pallets, finally producing nineteen in total which were scheduled to be taken across the border the following week. Our first aim had been completed, delivering some six tons of aid.

That evening we were all invited to the Rotary club meeting. This was an evening speaker event with a group of teenagers reporting on a leadership course they had attended which had been sponsored by the club. A meal followed.

We set about part two of our aim the following morning, being taken to the local Tesco by our Rotarian liaison to use the monetary donations to purchase large quantities of dried and no-perishable food which were added to the pallets.

Our third aim was more difficult to achieve. Volunteer organisations and charities were already well established at the rail border crossing at Zahony and it was clear that we would only be a hindrance. We were, though, able to purchase some badly needed foodstuffs for the refugees’ kitchen. A move to another border crossing at Beregsurany proved more beneficial and the minibus was put to use for the next two days carrying refugees to destinations inside Hungary.

At this stage Rotarian Patrick and the van departed for home as there was no more good that could be done with the van, leaving Rotarian Roger and Richard. Roger had been invited to attend a District PETS/SETS conference over the weekend where he was asked to address the attendees, explaining the background to our expedition. It was very well received and applauded when the reason for choosing Hungary was explained.

Further movement of refugees took place before both Roger and Richard returned to the UK. Without doubt none of this could have been achieved so successfully without the Rotary link, across three countries. Our hosts, Kisvarda Rotary Club, went out of their way to help with advice on what was needed, to arrange our accommodation and to ensure that our stay went smoothly. Please mention EX33 when responding to adverts

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JUST FOR FUN

General Knowledge Can you answer all 20?

March’s answers were:

Madonna, Alf, Thriller video, Cheers, Super Mario Brothers, He Man, Strawberry Shortcake, Karate Kid, PacMan, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Care Bears, Gremlins, ET,

Rubik’s Cube, Ferris Bueller, Ghostbusters, Tetris, NKOTB, Fraggle Rock and Hungry Hippos