The Ukraine Relief Centre charity, located at Castlepoint, is struggling to receive sufficient donations for their annual Christmas shoebox initiative from Bournemouth residents.
Last year, the initiative sent 4000 boxes containing toys to children in Ukraine.
Steve Hancock, a volunteer at the centre, shared that: “This year there’s a major shortage, we are struggling to get shoeboxes.”
He added: “We are urging people to donate the boxes.”
The centre has to compensate by purchasing goods for the boxes when there’s a shortage of donated items, which limits their expenses for other aid.
Karol Swiacki, Founder of the Ukraine Relief Centre, believes awareness for the charity has decreased.
He shared: “Everyone was getting involved in the first 6 months of war, we had 220 volunteers here in this place every day, and later on people started going back to their own business and lives.”
The Deputy Mayor of Bournemouth, George Farquhar, believes that the Bournemouth community “flooded in to help the centre initially,” but said: “There needs to be a refresh that the war is still ongoing, and more awareness that the Ukraine relief centre “still needs supplies”.
He added: “In the early days, people were queuing up with their shopping carts outside to give donations.”
He urges people to at least share a small gift this Christmas, he said there’s a need for a “more coordinated response” from Bournemouth residents to support the charity.
Volunteers believe one reason for the decline in donations is the influx of social media content about the Gaza war shared by Bournemouth residents.
Amanda Adams, a volunteer, said: “Young people in Bournemouth forget about Ukraine.
“They raise awareness for the gut-wrenching things happening in Gaza, but forget the same things are happening in Ukraine.”
When describing the impact of the Christmas shoeboxes on the Ukrainian children, Amanda said: “You can see the smile on their face.”
Karol said: “It’s a box of hope”.
The children think there’s someone that doesn’t even know them that’s thinking about them.”
Mary James, another volunteer, shared how she was sent a photo of baby dolls she had donated “in the arms of a Ukrainian child.”
She shared: “The photo had a family that had been bombed out of their home, and the three children held the dolls.”
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