Perthshire volunteer Martha Aitken is helping to feed up to 800 hungry people a day in war-torn Ukraine.
She returned to the country to help those in need in the Kharkiv area – where winter temperatures have dipped to -18C – after initially visiting last summer.
Martha (31) from Abernethy, an ex-pupil of Perth High School, went with a Ukrainian friend, Polina Pomitii (28) from Zaporizhzhia, to carry out her self-funded Project Soups initiative which has local women making huge batches of soups, pasta and goulash served with bread and given daily to people in the Russian-occupied zone north-east of Kharkiv.
Martha had no connection with Ukraine before a friend asked her if she would help with an aid delivery to the Polish border town of Medyka.
Returning to Perthshire after a first stint in Ukraine and Poland last summer, she reorganised herself to make a long winter trip giving essential supplies where larger aid agencies were not making an impact.
“We work a two-weekly rota of some of the most needy villages in the Kharkiv region. Some villages get three visits a week with our food, some get two depending on needs,” she told the PA.
“We visit villages as close as one mile to the Russian border with military convoy to make sure we are safe as they are restricted areas.”
The villages are still under regular air attacks. She said: “We had a major attack last night, with six missiles very close in central Kharkiv where I stay.
“Car alarms all went off with the vibrations and windows were shaking. I could hear the whistle before the bang which normally means very close.”
Martha added: “We don’t even understand how these people are surviving or where they appear from. When we arrive, we see that 60 to 70 per cent of buildings are destroyed. We often get help from other charities to bring extra aid like bedding and jackets.
“I can see in people’s eyes what it means to them that we are there.”
Martha said that the people who remain in these areas are generally poor or elderly people without income.
“Most villages we visit are cut off from electricity and water and struggle to cook for themselves for this reason and they cannot afford food as people who are not displaced do not receive financial help from government.
“The jars of pickles which are normally a huge source of food for these communities during the winter this year are non-existent.
“The larger populated areas and cities where displaced people have flocked to receive so much help, aid and charities services.
“Some villages tell us we are the only charity in months to visit and offer help.
“We employ one chef and two extra sets of hands for peeling vegetables who all have families. And without this work, would be really struggling.
“Our kitchen is full of good energy day to day and based in Kharkiv city, we rent it very cheaply from a Ukrainian company, 450 Firewood Oven and Grill, which supports us both with food donations and the kitchen space. Our meals are not luxury but they are filling and balanced, always with plenty of vegetables and meat.”
When Martha left Scotland at the end of last year, her hope was to continue through the worst of the winter months.
“We have enough funding to carry this project on for another two months making the same amount of meals we are producing now. We are sincerely grateful for each pound received – it goes a long way here.
“Please visit @projectsoups instagram or email projectsoups@gmail.com to make a donation.”
