Upon discovering the attack on Ukraine by the Russian army, both were seized with dread. Sister Claire Leroy, of the congregation of Saint-Paul de Chartres, lived for fourteen years in this country. And despite her return to Chartres, she retains close ties with its inhabitants.
For her part, Catherine Philippe spent ten years there, during her various humanitarian missions. She also keeps strong ties there. Very quickly, the two Euréliennes, whose friendship was forged a few years ago and strengthened there, decided to do all they could to bring assistance to this country that they have pegged in the heart.
“I felt called. When we see everything they have been through for decades, we see that these people have a resistance, an extraordinary inner strength. »
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Sister Claire is both in awe and overwhelmed by what Ukraine is going through right now. The nun then turned to humanitarian work, and the two women were very quickly joined by a small group with various skills (lawyer, association, chartered accountant, etc.), who are also used to charitable actions, as well only Ukrainians from the department.
Ukrainian refugees discover the school in Eure-et-Loir: “From the first laughter, we knew we had won something”
Yomi, an NGO founded in December
This momentum of mutual aid, called Solidarité Ukraine 28 , will lead to the delivery of food, hygiene products and medicines, during a trip to Poland, from March 27 to April 3. “We are sure that the journey is safe,” says Sister Claire. Nine Euréliens from the NGO Yomi (Youth on the international movement), founded last December, will take the road to Przemysl(on the border with Ukraine)
Sunday, in the early morning, aboard two utilities and a vehicle, loaded with all the donations collected for almost a month, from residents, businesses, shops…
Rescuers from the UIISC1 of Nogent-le-Rotrou mobilized for Ukraine
A reception center and an orphanage
This humanitarian project involves two sites near Warsaw. “We are going to work with the town hall of Przemysl, because there is a reception center for Ukrainian refugees and it is also a center for depositing donations. We can go to work there, so we signed up for this system to lend a hand, with reception, translation, packing, inventory management… In the group, we have people with diplomas in migration international organizations that will be able to lend a hand”, explains Catherine Philippe.
Faced with the influx of donations for Ukraine, the CCAS de Chartres is sorting through the boxes
The second part of the week, the group will go to the locality of Strachow to deposit clothes at the foundation of the Eucharistic apostolate of Nadliwie.
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“They took the decision to take in children evacuated from orphanages in kyiv. They told us that they needed food, hygiene products, children’s clothes. »
Set milestones for the future
This first trip aims to lay the groundwork for a long-term project, with Yomi already planning another humanitarian trip. By being on the spot, the Euréliens will take the measure of the situation by themselves, will identify the needs, and will establish contacts in order, subsequently, to provide tailor-made responses and to direct aid. “The idea is to be effective and to avoid humanitarian ‘scattering’. We prefer to be involved in the long term. The goal is to bring back reliable information. We will ask a lot of questions, at the same time, we will be useful, ”underlines Catherine Philippe.
Organize the arrival of families
In addition to the collection of donations and their delivery, the Solidarité Ukraine 28 project includes a reception component in Eure-et-Loir, in the short and medium term. “The idea of this first trip is, on the way back, to bring displaced Ukrainians back to Chartres,” hopes Sister Claire. But that will depend on the “ethical” feasibility of this operation on the spot.
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Beyond this trip, the objective is also to anticipate the arrival of “exiled families”, by finding accommodation, organizing administrative and psychological support, language initiation, etc.
Solidarity Ukraine 28 brings together the NGO Yomi, the Companions of Sharing, the Friends of Franz Stock, the Union of Ukrainians in France, as well as Sister Claire.
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Monitoring.
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