Why Mark was moved to help the Ukrainian struggle

* The vehicle Mark Birkill raised the money to pay for is delivered to Ukraine. 

A Corwen man has revealed how watching the moving arrival in the UK of two refugees from the war-torn country set him off on the road to strongly supporting Ukraine's battle for survival following the Russian invasion.

Mark Birkill, whose day job is working with veterans, has since helped deliver a 4x4 vehicle paid for by Penyllan Chapel in Llangollen to the front line to aid the military and civilians and recently raised enough money to pay for his own specialist vehicle to be sent out.

Mark told llanblogger: "In February 2022 I was appalled by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the news pictures coming out of the country.

"My wife and I agreed to host an older Ukrainian couple and they stayed with us for nearly two years. I was deeply moved by the sight of them getting off a coach at 4am in Chester bus station, bewildered, far from home, their lives packed into two suitcases. 

"While I am proud and privileged to have been a host, it also felt very inadequate. I considered any other ways I could help and became aware of several charities that were involved in acquiring pick-ups and 4x4s to take to Ukraine for use in frontline areas. 

"I set up a JustGiving page. Initially I asked local businesses if they had an old vehicle they were seeking to offload which drew a blank. I later visited Anna’s Cafe in Oak Street, Llangollen to drop off some flyers but saw I had been beaten to it by posters from a charity called Mission Ukraine. 

"I discovered that a local man, Danny Fairburn, was involved in the charity and we arranged to meet. Danny is an inspirational person having dedicated himself to supporting Ukraine. He told me that a local church had bought a vehicle and I could take it out with Pastor Brian Smith from the church and Paata Samsonidze from Anna’s, who is Ukrainian. 

"In December we took the vehicle to an American who was a former Deputy Police Sherriff serving in the Ukrainian Army near Chernobyl. 

"We stayed at Paata’s home near Kyiv for a week and he very generously showed us places of interest including Bucha, a site of Russian atrocities, Russian drones and tanks in Kyiv and, very movingly, Ukrainian military cemeteries and memorials to the fallen.

"My own fundraising eventually reached £2,000, enough to buy a vehicle, and two lads from Middlesborough took the vehicle to Ukraine. 

"I had some very generous donations including from people I didn’t know. I named the vehicle ‘Rhyddid’ - ‘Freedom’ in Welsh - and it makes me emotional to think that a Welsh speaker working in the country might see it. Donations to Mission Ukraine can be made via: https://www.missionukraine.uk/"