Maritimers offer aid to Ukrainian refugees arriving in the region

Some Ukrainians have walked for days to reach safety in Poland, but as a way to offer support, a Maritime Facebook group has bonded together to aid Ukrainian refugees arriving in the region.

"They look like families that only went for vacation with suitcases, but they are refugees," says Dr. Oded Regev.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine, several Ukrainians have been fleeing war their home, forced to look for a new one.

"People that I’ve talked to in Poland have said they are swamped, Poland is swamped with people," says Carol Ailles.

The Facebook group has about 1800 members – half of which are people offering support, the other half are Ukrainians seeking help.

"Our goal is to get as many people as possible out of Poland or out of danger," Ailles says.

"I think it’s safe to say that it’s kind of the Maritime way to just go out of our way to help someone in need," says Meaghan Harwood, who learned of a Ukranian family new to the Halifax area and is offering what she can to help them settle.

"I reached out and said hey ‘I have some silverware but we also have a storage unit that will be empty in the next little while’ although they don’t need it right now, we have offered up our storage unit which has beds, some couches and some other items that they could use," says Harwood.

Harwood says the sights coming out of Ukraine are heartbreaking and she is thankful to live in a peaceful country and is able to help.

"The mom in this case is about to have a baby and I just would hope that someone would do this for us if we were in this position, this terrible position," Harwood says.

The United Nations estimates 10 million people have fled war-torn Ukraine.