Nick Arnold, Camille Dressler, Iryna Zaharodina and Artem Semenyshyn
A woman on the Isle of Eigg has set up an online fundraiser to help power hospitals in Ukraine – with the first donation made by people on Raasay.
When Camille Dressler met Artem Semenyshyn from Ukrainian charity RePower Ukraine, she was so moved by the story of how they are bringing renewable energy to hospitals and field doctors in the war-ravaged country that she decided to launch a GoFundMe appeal.
The hospitals suffer daily power outages caused by continued military air strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure since Russia’s illegal invasion of the country two years ago.
Artem was in London last month to speak at a major solar energy event when he presented ‘Solar Recovery of Ukraine’ to delegates and sought UK support for the vision.
Camille, who chairs the Scottish Islands Federation and lives on renewables-powered Eigg, is the Scottish ambassador for RePower Ukraine.
“The story of this charity really moved me,” said Camille.
“My grandmother was born in Ukraine and she too suffered terrible conditions during the 1920s, when she almost died after giving birth to my mother because the war meant there were no medical facilities for her when she needed them.
“Their lives were saved by one courageous doctor who took them home until my grandmother regained her strength. I learnt very early on the value of solidarity and this is why I feel passionate about this appeal.
“To provide much-needed power for Ukrainian field doctors operating in difficult conditions, often without electricity, is helping to save lives because power banks provide them with head torches and phones to light the operating table when there is no time to wait for the power supply to be restored.”
Camille said the charity was “delighted” that the first donation to the GoFundMe appeal was made by Raasay Community Renewables, the island’s community-owned energy company.
RCR has decided to split five per cent of their profits from renewable production between RePower Ukraine and a mental health charity on a yearly basis for the next five years.
Iryna Zahorodnia, director of communications at RePower Ukraine and who also attended the London event, said: “This is a great gesture of solidarity.”
Meanwhile, over £3,000 in donations have already been raised through the GoFundMe appeal to equip field hospitals and stabilisation teams with power banks, solar and portable batteries to cope with power infrastructure destruction as a weapon of war.
The charity also reports that as a result of its presence at the London event, it has secured £6,000 in sponsorship from solar companies, meaning that it only needs another £6,000 to install a rooftop solar energy system on Kharkiv’s Children Hospital No 5, which treats youngsters with serious illnesses and disabilities.
Donations can be made to Camille’s fundraiser by going to: gofundme.com/f/solar-generators-for-field-doctors-in-ukraine