2006 TartanKiev Print

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Monday 9th October

The week started with a taxi ride to the Kiev special school of arts for children with impaired vision. Full-time home and school to 120 blind or partially blind children, this good cause was recommended to us by Alina Kisina, Ukrainian photographer living in Edinburgh, and a patron of the school. 

After 20 minutes the taxi wound it's way up a narrow, shabby residential street. As we started to wonder if we were lost the school came into view - a large red-stone building, and a lot nicer than we'd expected.

I was accompanied by Oleksa, Christine and Leshia Demianczuk - parents and sister of Alex Demianczuk who had co-founded TartanKiev. Oleksa and Christine both left Ukraine after WWII to settle in Edinburgh, and were proud to be back representing their adopted home. They were also extremely useful translators! 

We were met there by David and Heather Giles from the British Embassy - Aberdeen fans but ok despite that, their assistance during the week was vital.

Galina, the Governess of the school, met us in her office. With Alina's help we had found out before the trip what they required: 

• Repair work to fire escapes
• A new medical room
• Glasses
• Special stationery
• Medication

After some quick introductions we got down to business, confirming what the money would buy and arranging the party for Thursday. We were then given a tour of the school, including meeting some of the children in their classes and having quick look at the room that would be converted into the new medical room - where children who feel unwell will be able to head off for a wee bit of TLC and a lie down.

Galina then took me to her Bank where I deposited £5,000 into the School's account, paid some invoices for them and also changed some cash into Ukrainian shoogles to pay for a slap-up party meal for all the children on Thursday (and probably Friday, Saturday…)

In the afternoon we met up with a Government official who had us driven to Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5, which was about as nice as it sounds. This institution only came to our attention a couple of weeks before the trip via Vitali Pantus, General Consul at the Ukrainian Embassy in Edinburgh. 

If the inspirational Special School deserved help, then No. 5 is a place that desperately needs it. Stuck out in an estate well out of the centre of Kiev, this place brings to mind all the old Soviet, Eastern Bloc images. The home functions as a rehabilitation centre - homeless children brought off the streets are shaved and scrubbed, their clothes burned, and they're looked after for 3 months. If they have recovered sufficiently psychologically they are then placed in a permanent orphanage.

We met the Home's Governess, who made it clear that she couldn't accept any monetary donations - anything they received would have simply been deducted from their already meagre State funding - so instead they compiled a list of what they needed. Later, David Giles was kind enough to volunteer to do the "shopping". Nice of him, especially since he'd just spent 2 hours getting lost on the way out.

We were then treated to a show - singing and dancing by children, with another 50 of the shaven-headed weans enthusiastically clapping and singing along.


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Tuesday 10th October- Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5 - A concert by the children


Tuesday started disastrously as I scrambled around to collect all 20-something kit-bags of donated clothes, toys, bedding etc which a small army of TA had volunteered to carry over for us. Just to make it more challenging I managed to lose my mobile in a taxi before I'd managed to recover any of the bags. 

The upshot was that we travelled to Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5 with nothing to give them, except Spud the Piper and change from their daily routine.

When we arrived near the home, 3 of us (Lesia, Bob Shields and myself) made an impromptu visit to a nearby supermarket, where we loaded up as many shopping trolleys as we could with party food and drink - this hopefully provided the kids with a few days of treats.

Once at the home the children again treated us to a show, but while they sat in the hall waiting for us the first thing they heard was Spud the Piper. This was great fun for the children, wondering what the hell the racket was as Spud led us up the stairs, down the corridor and into the room. The previous day's "rehearsal" had worked a treat because the kiddies put on a better performance and seemed much more confident, moving quite a few of their TA guests to tears.

Afterwards we got a quick tour of the accommodation (see photos) and then agreed that the Governess would provide David with a shopping list. 

Returning to town I just felt numb and depressed for those poor children.

Note: David has put a massive amount of work since the trip, buying as much of the stuff on their list as possible with the £5,000 that we donated.


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Thursday 12th October - Kiev special school of arts for children with impaired vision


Thursday was a much happier affair. Somehow I'd jammily managed to cobble all the kitbags together, thanks to people lending me their mobiles and also by just bumping into folk.

The Embassy kindly provided us with a minibus onto which we loaded around 20 kitbags, along with several TA - Chris Turner, Big Al, Tartan Sheep (Lynsey Menzies), Mr Sheep, as well as drummer Gordon Brown and his friends.

After another quick tour of the school/home Gordon drummed us into a large room where all the children were sitting. That was followed by an impressive concert by the children, including a brass-instrument display by 4 lads who it turns out have won many awards.

After a nice speech by Galina we had a peak at the dining room, which had been prepared for a party for the children….have to say the food looked terrific.

The Crack of Dawn TA turned up just as we were leaving but they got a tour after us.

And that was that. Half a year of organisation, fundraising, exasperation and eventually some success, topped-off with the usual mix of sadness and happiness. Happiness to be able to help, but sadness at seeing the situation of these children.

Oh well.


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The Trip - Images

This is a small selection of the photographs taken during the trip to Kiev.
 
 
Tuesday - Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5 - A concert by the children


Thursday - Kiev special school of arts for children with impaired vision


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What did we donate?

 



Kiev special school of arts for children with impaired vision
Full time home and school to 120 blind or partially blind children, this good cause was recommended to us by Alina Kisina, Ukrainian photographer living in Edinburgh, and a patron of the school. 

With Alina's help we had found out before the trip what they required: 

Repair work to fire escapes;
A new medical room;
Glasses;
Special stationery;
Medication

After a bit of chat it was decided to donate £5,000 towards these items, plus cash for a slap up meal to make our visit a bit more memorable for the children. Also, in the build up to the trip Tartan Army and friends began to flood Tartankiev with donated clothes, toys, sweets, stationery etc. In the end we were able to arrive at the school with over a dozen kit bags full of good quality donations, plus 120 bags of sweets donated by Kirkaldy Tartan Army.

Of all the practical items that our donation paid for, the medical room will have the biggest long-term benefit. Essentially what is now a run-down cupboard will be transformed into a room where children who feel unwell will be able to head off for a wee bit of TLC and a lie down.

Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5
About as nice as it sounds, this institution came to our attention a couple of weeks before the trip via Vitali Pantus, General Consul at the Ukrainian Embassy in Edinburgh. 

This really is a place that needs some assistance. Stuck out in an estate well out of the centre of Kiev, this place brings to mind all the old Soviet, Eastern Bloc images. The home functions as a rehabilitation centre - homeless children brought off the streets are shaved and scrubbed, their clothes burned, and then they're looked after for 3 months. If they have recovered sufficiently psychologically they are then placed in a permanent orphanage.

Not nice, so we were pleased to have found them and to be able to help them. They wouldn't take a monetary donation - anything they received would have simply been deducted from their already meagre State funding - so instead they compiled a list of what they need.
It includes winter coats, jeans, t-shirts, underwear, sneakers and other basics.

David Giles at the British Embassy was kind enough to volunteer to do the "shopping", so we transferred £5,000 to fund this.

We also went on a bit of a supermarket dash to gift them several trolleys worth of treats, and were able to give them half a dozen or so kit-bags of cloths, sweets and toys.

The only regret was not having more to give them.


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Who did we help?

 

 

1. The City of Kyiv Orphanage
Identified with the help of the Ukrainian Consulate in Edinburgh

2. Aspern

Suggested by the British Embassy in Kiev, this home has 40 children, and also does other work with with street children, orphans and children in poor families. They have a football team and are soon opening a second home, so they'll be needing as much as they can get.

3.Kiev Special School of Arts for Children with Impaired Vision
By Alina Kisina, Ukrainian photographer & patron of the school

I am extremely passionate about this school because of the difference that it makes to disabled children’s lives.
It was founded 35 years ago in Soviet Ukraine as an institution (special boarding school) for children with partial or total eye sight loss to help them improve their health, receive secondary education and financially support their parents by accommodating them. 

BUT what is going to happen to these disabled children after they finish school? How to help them not become a burden for the government and society?

The school realised the massive potential offered by art for rehabilitation of children with impaired vision and developed a unique concept for this purpose. Currently it provides general education, accommodation, rehabilitation, mentoring and teaching of arts for 120 children with impaired vision. They have a flute ensemble, a brass ensemble, a dancing group, a drama theatre, a puppet theatre, they learn painting, design, planting design, pottery, etc.)
It has allowed the children to achieve such results in arts that they beat healthy children in competitions which gives them confidence and self-belief. Studying art has helped the children to such a degree in terms of their academic achievement that many are able to work and even undertake further studies on leaving the school: several have attained PhDs and doctorates and most importantly are able to provide for themselves and achieve their goals in life in spite of their disabilities.

Financing?
Under current legislation in Ukraine institutions of this type must be financed solely by the state, however NO financing has been allocated for:
- medication in the last 10 years;
- repairs and maintenance in the last 15 years;
- teaching materials as well as stationery, household cleaning items, domestic goods (buckets, brooms, brushes, saucepans, cutlery, tableware…) in the last 15 years.

This has lead to the following problems:
- roof leaks have developed in many places;
- 26 windows are completely rotten;
- 2 out of 3 gas cookers do not work;
- the school hall has no chairs;
- there is hardly any stationery, household cleaning items, domestic goods, teaching materials or equipment (i.e. blackboards are over 30 years old), medication, bed linen, clothes and footwear for the children…

How is the school surviving?
- charitable donations; 
- enthusiasm of long-serving teachers who often undertake tasks outside the requirements of their jobs; 
- unpaid overtime, (low rates of pay mean constant understaffing ) leading to teachers’ strained health and lack of personal time with their families. 
I am not going to argue that this is the right approach. Probably not. They live with the motto “Do what you must and accept what you get”. 

I would like to finish with this simple example: If the school had, let’s say, £1000 for their brass ensemble to record a CD of their award-winning music, they could potentially earn tens of thousands pounds. This is why supporting them now is not just about feeding them, it’s about helping them to help themselves, it’s their active development, future professional realisation and financial independence in spite of their disabilities. TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN.

All of these organisations are in dire need of basics like clothes, blankets, school equipment, towels, kitchen equipment(plates, cups etc), toiletries. Our aim is to provide as much of these things as we possibly can, as well as more cheerful items like toys, sweets, pencil cases, rucksacks and anything else that'll cheers up the children.


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Fundraising - thank you!

 

The generosity of the Tartan Army and their friends was never in doubt - but we absolutely smashed the £10,000 target in the end.

From individual donations to organised sponsored activity, so many people have chipped in that it's hard to convey my gratitude properly. Here's a summary of what was raised and how:


Charity Ball - £4,800 raised
Held on Saturday 19th August, this really kick-started the project. Not only was it a great fun night, with Scots and Ukrainians combining to create a great atmosphere, but it was the first event to come together.

Altogether we raised £2,400 on the night - a sum matched by the employees of an Edinburgh firm who have asked to remain unnamed.

110 folk attended the evening, each ticket giving us a £5 profit. We also raked in £570 from raffle tickets, another £1,020 from the auction, and £340 in personal donations on the night. Tesco Personal Finance also donated £500 to pay for the Ukrainian band that'd travelled up from Coventry.

The Charity Ball was a great success, judging by the amount of dancing & singing being done and the amount of money raised.

The evening started well with a real buzz in the Gallery Bar, everyone dressed up for the occasion. After staff ushered everyone up to the Apex Suite, dinner was served, accompanied by Ukrainian music from Zabava band Chorna Roza who'd travelled up from Coventry.

The raffle took place during coffee (star prizes were Champions League tickets and One Spa vouchers), and then Ukrainian photographer Alina Kisina said a few emotional words about one of the orphanages. Roddy Scott volunteered to do the auction and proceeded to entertain everyone for 30 minutes, and (more importantly) to squeeze a fair amount of cash out of the audience.

The rest of the night was like a Ukrainian wedding (well, possibly - i've never actually seen one), the band assisted by singer Sofiya Fedyna who made sure everyone did a turn on the dancefloor. Highlights were a Ukrainian-style conga/Loch Lomond combo, Alex Demianczuk's display of Cossack acrobatics, and pretty much everyone having a bit of a waltz, tango, shuffle or whatever took their fancy!

Mobile Phones
Next up we asked folk to donate their old mobile phones, for which we received £400 from a recycling company

ETA, Association of Ukrainians
Edinburgh Tartan Army contributed with a £100 donation and a raffle that raised £115 net. The AoU chipped in with £136 raised at their Independence Day celebrations.

T Shirts
Around 150 t-shirts were sold to the Tartan Army ahead of the fixture - a snazzy grey number with the Tartankiev logo and a Trident design, plus the fixture details in Ukrainian. This raised around £750, with a few t-shirts left over to be sold in the future as "retro" fashion garments.

Sponsored Swim
The Crack of Dawn Tartan Army contributed a whacking £1,200 from a sponsored swim up in Fraserburgh.


Sponsored Head Shave
Allan Collins up in Dundee shaved his head before the France game (perhaps this should become a regular thing?) and for some reason people gave him £570 for it! Whatever the reason, we're were delighted to receive the cheque. More details and photos can be found on the Activities page.

Longforgan TA bus
Ally Wilson and the folk at the Longforgan TA donated an incredible £1,750 that they raised 

The Bevvytrain
Question - why on earth would anyone put themselves through a 3 day smelly train journey back from a Scotland defeat in Eastern Europe, when they could fly? I don't pretend to have the answer, but who cares - Neil MacDonald who organised the torture trip managed to raise just over £1,000 for Tartankiev by obtaining group discounts etc and persuading everyone who went to donate the "change" from their original ticket price. Great stuff and thanks to all 60 who travelled. 

Additional
We were also gifted almost £1,000 from:
Royal Bank of Scotland;
Red MacGregor;
Future Positive Consulting;
Nigel Beal; Doug Heron; Mike Ure; Ffyona Scott; Simon Quirk and David Ogilvy


And last but not least…

The Tartan Army Sunshine Appeal who added their usual £2,000 donation to the pot. The inspiration behind the whole project, the folk who are TASA were steady in their support throughout. Cheers!


 

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