Natalia and Vadym never had much money. For this reason they and their two children shared a home with Vadym’s parents. The older couple drank heavily and the atmosphere at home was not easy. And then disaster struck. Vadym joined Ukraine’s armed forces as a pilot in February 2022 and was killed in action. With little income and no family to help her, Natalia was left to look after the two children and to take care of her alcoholic father-in-law.

“When we called to give them Blythswood shoeboxes, Natalia had just obtained a job as a cleaner at the village council,” says Tanya Shpygunova who works for Serve Now. “Your gifts meant a lot to her and to her kids. Toys, clothes and sweeties brought joy to their lives. To them your kindness felt like a recognition of the sacrifice made by Vadym in fighting for their freedom.”