Submariner Ships Sea Shanties to Ukraine
For over three years now, I have wanted very
much to visit Ukraine, to offer moral support and share some
songs with the brave people there. Given the current
situation, it has been difficult to make the necessary
connections for this venture - until I found...
Ta-Da!...
MONDAY SHANTY; "vocal band" (read: 'Shanty Group'), in Kyiv. I
am well aware that there are shanty groups even farther from
the sea, in North America; but this was exciting. To then
speak with Andrew Yakovenko - the instigator of the group -
and find that he was already aware of me, AND some of my
songs, was, literally, thrilling!
Andrew; and the other driving-force of Monday
Shanty: Tonya Vinnyk (singer and international choir
organizer); have agreed to assist me with my quest; so we are
planning a 10-day venture to Ukraine early in November. We
plan to visit pubs, cafes, schools, hospitals, concert venues,
even bomb-shelters.
We hope to meet people, sing with them, share a
small slice of their lives; and impress on them our sincere
and abiding thanks for their commitment, and for the suffering
they are enduring whilst being - what I perceive as - a bulwark for the
defense of western, democratic civilization.
old friend Janie Meneely, her husband: Rob van Sante (lately of
THE BATTLEFIELD BAND); was enthused enough to want a seat in the
boat, immediately offering his support and his amazing guitar
and vocal talents. It would have been stupid to turn down an
offer like that... so we didn't. Rob is not only a technical
wizard, but a guitar virtuoso and captivating singer. Janie:
from Maryland's Chesapeake Bay area; is a talented performer;
and originator of her own nautically-based spoken and sung
vignettes. The two of them will add much appreciated heft and
harmonies to this project and, like us, will be personally
covering all their own costs.
Along the way we hope to raise
voices, morale, plus some money for Ukrainian charities
helping those suffering from the war. There are copious numbers of organizations in
Ukraine; all deserving of support. Selecting just a couple of
these has been problematic, but we've settled on two...
The BIG
FAMILY shelter, in Kharkiv, takes in destitute, elderly,
disabled people,seeking refuge from the strife;
AND for those of you who would like to ensure that your
donations are going directly to the entity you are supporting,
we can recommend The ZHERELO SPECIAL SCHOOL, for children with
Down Syndrome, deafness, or mobility impairment. See Anna's
article about the school here.
It is just a little more complicated to donate
to them, as they are far too busy safeguarding their pupils to
set up a funding page, but Zherelo, in the city of
Zaporizhzhia, can receive donations via PayPal.
1. Log-in to PayPal
2. Search for ZhereloSpecialschool - the correct
search will take you to IrynaRylushko@ZhereloSpecialschool -
Iryna is the school principal.
3. Enter the amount you wish to donate.
4. If prompted for a payment type, select 'Friends and
Family', and please add a note that this is 'Shanty
Support'.
5. Hit 'Send'. THAT'S IT!
You will receive a message
confirming receipt of your donation, with a message of
thanks.
If you are in a position
to help financially, we would ask that you send your
donations directly to either of our chosen charities.
Also... a huge help to further support for our small
endevour would be by sharing this information with as many
of your friends and contacts as possible.
Very many thanks, Tom, Lyn, Janie and Rob.
