February 2023 marked the one year anniversary of the war in Ukraine.
On Friday 24th February, a Vigil was held at the Milton Keynes Rose in Campbell Park to mark the first anniversary of Putin’s war in Ukraine. The event was introduced by Revd Nicola Vidamour from the Woughton Ecumenical Partnership who used to live in Russia. The Chair of Buckinghamshire Council, Councillor Dev Dhillon, was then invited to speak.
This was followed by an emotional speech from Viktoriya Shtanko who described her feelings on the day the war started. She also spoke about the work of Ukraine Appeal – the charity she has founded to support Ukrainians, both those who are still in the country and those who have fled. Viktoriya then introduced Galina, a refugee, now living in Milton Keynes with her two young children. Galina is a beautiful singer and gave a very moving performance of a Ukrainian song called Plyve Kacha. The lyrics are a dialogue between a mother and a son going off the war. Galina was draped in a Ukrainian flag which had been signed by those defending their homeland.
Revd Tim Norwood, the Anglican Area Dean and Chair of Churches Together in Milton Keynes, led a time of silence when people were invited to place candles and flowers around the Rose. The vigil closed with the reading of a prayer provided by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
On Saturday 25th February, we attended the Memorial Service dedicated to Ukraine at Christ the Cornerstone. At this service, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in MK became a member of Churches Together in Milton Keynes and signed the Membership Covenant.
We were also delighted to support a Peace Vigil for Ukraine at the Milton Keynes Quaker Centre.
We look forward to supporting our Ukrainian Community further in the future.
