Siobhans Trust Ukraine

Tomorrow marks the 2 year anniversary of David F-P arriving at the Polish border town of Medyka to help Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian invasion. What a long way we have come thanks to the tremendous effort by everyone in the Siobhan’s Trust community; the donors, the volunteers and the amazing dedicated team!

From today the Ukraine operation will be owned by a newly established charity called HopeFull. The HopeFull trustees are David Fox-Pitt, Chris Makintosh and Ian Jamieson.

Tom Hughes will continue to lead operations in the field with his amazing team, Audrey, Kevin, Nina, Volodomyr and Alex. Please follow and visit their website www.hopefull.org.uk to donate to this ongoing effort.

Siobhan’s Trust is no longer active in Ukraine but will continue to run a Rapid Reaction operation to provide relief to other humanitarian crises (such as the incredible effort in Turkey last February where we made hundreds of thousands of meals for the earthquake devastated community in Antakya under Audrey’s remarkable leadership). Please stay tuned for the next mission.

Huge hugs to you all and THANK YOU !!

Harry

Pizza & Cola - the iconic duo.

Annnnnd that’s a wrap! Our final look at a 2023

1. Nov. 18 Mykolayiv, Ukraine - ST volunteers play backgammon by flashlight. Civilian infrastructure is regularly targeted in Ukraine leaving millions w/out electricity or heating in the cold winter months. Nights like these are a common occurrence in the east of the country.

2. July 9, Donetsk Oblast — Hollowed eyes. Face painting at an ST pizza party. Nothing can paint over the psychological trauma that Ukrainian children suffer from daily air raid sirens and bombs. The impact of the war reaches far beyond the front lines.

3. Oct. 2 Mykolayiv, Ukraine - The fleet. In 2023 Siobhans Trust gained 2 new cooking trucks from Sedgeberg School and St. James Place. W/ their combined 11 ovens we can cook as many as 400 pizzas/hour!

4. Jan. 16, London, England. MP Iain Duncan Smith addresses the House of Commons on Ukraine and his time w/ Siobhans Trust.

5. March 15 Samankaya, Türkiye - Chef Ekram looks on at a shipment of potatoes which he will prepare into meals for earthquake victims.

6. March 15, Samankaya, Türkiye - Where the magic happens. A former classroom which became the Siobhans Trust Field Kitchen where volunteers cooked over 200,000 hot meals.

7. March 11, Samandağ, Türkiye - Siobhans Trust cooks pizza at a local aid distributiosite. The need in these areas was unlike anything we had ever seen. Over 60 days we brought pizza to 100+ IDP camps and villages distributing 60,000+ pizzas to earthquake victims and still felt we had only scratched the surface. The grief and scale of destruction are immeasurable.

8. Nov. 21, London, England - Siobhans Trust receives the distinguished Charimans Award from the for our work in Ukraine.

9. Nov. 8, Zaphorizia, Ukraine - The Queue. Lines like these keep us humble, every day stretching hundreds long. Some queue because it is the only hot meal they will have. Others queue for a chance to be out in their communities, to see friends and talk about something other than the war. No matter the reason, there is a hot pizza waiting at the end.

10. Our volunteers! A big thank you to everyone who has been a part of 2023.

Photos 3,8 and 10 by Stokes Photography

Looking back at a 2023.

March 30 Antakya, Türkiye. Siobhans Trust volunteers distribute breakfast to an IDP Camp in Antakya, Türkiye after a 7.8 earthquake rocked the city. Many of those affected had recently fled to Türkiye from neighboring Syria since its civil war in 2012, only to find their lives uprooted once again.

March 1 Hatay Stadium, Türkiye. Everyone loves George. Children’s writing on the back of the pizza delivery truck.

June 11 Halytsynivs’ka, Ukraine. Waiting on a tow — Siobhans Trust receives a tow from the Ukrainian army through a field. Many of the roads in the once occupied Kherson Oblast remain heavily mined requiring lorries to take alternate routes to reach remote villages.

June 19 Zaphorizia, Ukraine. In the heat of summer a woman enjoys an ice cold Coca Cola from Siobhans Trust. This year Siobhans Trust became Coca Cola Ukraine’s ‘Front Line Partner’, distributing Coca Cola alongside pizza.

Sept., Ukraine - Siobhans Trust volunteers Paula Reid and Neil Laughton cycle across Ukraine in a Penny Farthing and a traditional bicycle. Their ride took them from Odessa to Chornobyl raising money and awareness for the trust.

Dec. 2 Usteriky, Ukraine. Happy customers. A child receives pizza from Siobhans Trust. To-date the trust has distributed over 1 million pizzas.

Looking back at a 2023.

1. Two children enjoy face painting by Siobhans Trust volunteers at a pizza site in western Donetsk region of Ukraine. A small way to bring a little more joy. July, 2023.

2. Reconstruction begins on a building destroyed by a bomb in downtown Kharkiv, Ukraine from the early days of the war. Bombardment is continuous and relentless and many municipalities are hesitant to rebuild. May, 2023.

3. Head of Operations, Tom Hughes, loads up water to be transported to towns and villages after the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam in southern Ukraine which left thousands without clean water supply. June, 2023.

4. Pizza is delivered by boat to the town of Krasnolyubets’k where, after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, all roads and bridges were flooded leaving the town without food, clean water or electricity. June, 2023.

5. On Feb. 6th a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Türkiye and Syria killing more than 55,000 people and displacing hundreds of thousands more. Siobhans Trust arrived in Türkiye Feb. 14th to set up field operations. February, 2023.

6. Iskenderun, Türkiye. A child receives pizza and chocolate. Comfort food to comfort the soul. April, 2023.

7. Siobhans Trust volunteers preparing food for a shelter in Antakya, Türkiye where over 1,000 displaced persons live in tents after their homes were destroyed by the earthquake. Feburary, 2023.

8. Uman, Ukraine where hours earlier a bomb struck a residential building. Siobhans Trust on site providing pizza and hot drinks for victims and rescue workers. May, 2023.

#2023

Volunteering Ukraine have been hugely helpful connecting us to people from all over the world who wish to help - showing Ukraine that they are not forgotten. If you’d like to volunteer then contact Jo - [email protected]

Volunteering in Ukraine - The ultimate guide Your opportunity to change the lives of millions. Volunteering opportunities in Ukraine - feeding troops, building houses, supporting communities, growing connections. Together we can do great things.

Cold weather, warm hearts & Coca Cola. Siobhans Trust is serving up 50,000 bottles of Coca Cola between now and Christmas thanks to and we are seeing A LOT of smiling faces!

Light in the darkness. A moment of fun for the children of Ukraine.

We’d like to take the opportunity to thank those wonderful supporters who fundraise for us in imaginative ways. Over 45000 pizzas have been paid for by the amazing efforts of The Swanbourne Estate who arranged two magical evenings in their woodland wedding venue. Every one of those FORTYFIVE THOUSAND people in Ukraine who queued to receive the gift of a hot 🍕☕️ 🤗will have had their day lifted knowing that people outside Ukraine care about them at this time. Thank you.

It’s very cold now and it’s very simple ☕️+🍕+🤗= HOPE
Please donate

Thankyou V&A Dundee

Thanks to a collaboration between friends and supporters of one of our Ukraine Tartan kilts features in The Tartan Exhibition at V&A Dundee and last night they held a reception for us. The exhibition is open until mid January and it is amazing how Tartan has such a fascinating strong thread through history. In our case wearing a kilt with Ukrainian tartan sends an immediate visual message that we’ve come from outside Ukraine and are showing solidarity to the resilient people of Ukraine at this time.

Keeping on fundraising

Thankyou for another great fundraising evening to keep Ukraine alive in our hearts this winter

It takes a village. Grateful to for including Siobhan’s Trust as one of the beneficiaries of their 2023 Christmas Online Charity Auction. Link in bio 🔗

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Thankyou Boisdale Restaurants

The Boisdale Online Charity Auction 84 amazing lots from vintage ci**rs, rare whiskies, fine wine, to art, and wonderful experiences

Humbled and honoured to have received the Chairman’s Award from the Centre for Social Justice this week. Founder and Head of Fundraising David Fox-Pitt and Head of Field Operations Tom Hughes were in London to talk about our work. Thank you Iain Duncan Smith MP and the Center for Social Justice

The first snowfall in Ukraine. Next week temperatures will drop to -10. Many anticipate Russia will resume its targeting of critical infrastructure as it did last year, wiping out heating throughout the country. As the holidays approach families feel the absence of their loved ones off fighting on the front lines. Now, more than ever, Ukranians need to feel supported. ST has resumed our tea, coffee and hot coco service and hope that our pizzas will warm both belly’s and hearts this winter ❄️

Totally awesome team Siobhans Trust Ukraine

Everyone likes pizza 🍕

The joy on the face of this kid when he saw the giant bubbles is completely magical

Even amidst the very real horror of war, kids want to be kids. Our teams were in Dnipro and Lviv for the Halloween weekend helping bring smiles and foster a sense of normalcy with a pizza, juice and fun.

600 days ago…and well over one million pizzas later.

It is 600 days since I first set out with friends Chris, Jimmy and Will to the Polish/Ukrainian border where we set up a field kitchen serving terrified civilians fleeing Ukraine as the Russian tanks rolled in towards Kyiv. Back then we had a wood fired pizza oven trailer, my Unimog a Defender and a box trailer filled with tea urns, flour, tea, coffee, tins of tomatoes, gazebos and a huge amount of good will. By the time we reached Medyka our action had raised £90k.
This week we have two teams in Ukraine serving all over the county with a fleet of pizza trucks. Every endeavour needs a vital spark of Positiverosity. Believe in your goal and the rest will follow. We now have the capacity to serve up to 4000 pizzas 🍕 EVERY DAY.
There is bloodshed in every story on the news today but when we feel helpless there is always some small thing we can do to connect with others - as individuals we have so much in common.

Working together to support Ukraine

Here in Scotland we welcome another unusual fundraising idea for Siobhan’sTrust Siobhans Trust Ukraine! This one will definitely be unique. Thanks Fiona Leslie and Fingask Castle

Thanks to this volunteering platform Volunteering Ukraine people are finding us and offering their help and support. You can always contact us direct if you’re thinking about volunteering…[email protected]

Volunteering in Ukraine - The ultimate guide Your opportunity to change the lives of millions. Volunteering opportunities in Ukraine - feeding troops, building houses, supporting communities, growing connections. Together we can do great things.