Dear Ukrainian Guests
Happy New Year to you all! We hope that you enjoyed some special events over the last month and for those who mark Christmas, that you enjoyed both Scottish and Ukrainian celebrations!
Remember that if you have any questions or want more information at any time, please look at our website www.dumgal.gov.uk/supportukraine – there is a translation facility called ‘recite me’ – and/or you can email us on resettlementproject@dumgal.gov.uk at any time.
If you know of another Ukrainian guest in the region who is not receiving this newsletter, please ask them to email Resettlementproject@dumgal.gov.uk and they can be added to receive future editions.
Forthcoming Events
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European Movement in Scotland, with Sunflower Scotland, presents Ceilidh For Ukraine. On Saturday 18 February 2023 at Kirkcudbright Parish Hall you can enjoy an evening rich in Scottish culture, with entertainment provided by The Shore Road Ceilidh Band. Doors open at 7.30pm, with dancing starting from 8pm. Attedeeds are welcome to bring their own bottle. Tickets are £10 each, under 12s are free, or a family ticket is available for £25.
Call 07873 385723 or 07795 823085 for ticket information.
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There are loads of events happening right across Dumfries and Galloway. Click on the logo to find out what’s going on near you, and also subscribe to this very popular free platform. |
Information Round Up
Stockings for All
 Thanks to £1700 of generous donations from the Burns Howff Club and £100 from Masonic Lodge Dumfries Kilwinning No 53, every Ukrainian Guest staying in our 6 Welcome Hub Accommodations in Dumfries and Galloway over Christmas received a stocking on Christmas Day.
Two-hundred-and-twenty Christmas stockings were kindly prepared by MOOL (Massive Outpouring of Love – Dumfries and Galloway Refugee Action) and delivered in time for Christmas. The stockings were packed full of gift-wrapped personal items tailored to each guest’s age and gender accompanied by a hand-written note from one of MOOL’s volunteers.
On Christmas Eve, night porters in each of the Welcome Hubs, spent time carefully hanging each stocking on guests' doors as a surprise for Christmas morning – for many the first away from home.
To raise the money, the Howff Club held a fundraising event where 80 members and friends enjoyed an evening of fish suppers and entertainment provided by community members including local piper Callum Watson and accordionist Lee McQueen.
Howff Club President, Peter Hutchison, commented: “This event was a wonderful gathering of kindred spirits with a heart for the people of Ukraine. We are delighted to be able to make this small financial gesture to the local community of Ukrainian Guests in Dumfries and Galloway in the spirit of Burns.”
Lodge Dumfries Kilwinning added: “It was great to be able to assist in ensuring that all Ukranian Guests received a Christmas stocking.”
Representatives from the Burns Howff Club, MOOL and the Welcome Hubs met at the Ukrainian Café in the Crichton grounds in Dumfries to celebrate the stockings’ success and the contribution this made to make many Ukrainian Guests first Christmas in Scotland one to remember.
Partners from across Dumfries and Galloway continue to run programmes and initiatives to support Ukrainian Guests resettle in Scotland. For more information on what support is available please visit https://www.dumgal.gov.uk/article/24680/Support-for-Ukraine. To get in touch with MOOL or find out more about its work, visit its Facebook Page or email hello@mool.scot
Celebrating Christmas Ukrainian Style
On January 7, there was a ‘Ukrainian Christmas’ event at the Dumfries and Galloway Multicultural Association – an event that was enjoyed by everyone. There was music and singing and Ukrainian delicacies.
Bev Bone, from the Resettlement Team said: "It was a privilege to be part of the event. It seemed warmth, sharing and celebration were at its heart with music, singing, food and contributions from speakers proving both uplifting and moving, especially the account of how Christmas is celebrated in Ukraine. Adults and children coming together and sharing Scottish and Ukrainian traditions created an atmosphere that had meaning and reflected the thought, effort and endeavour put in of all who played a part in contributing to this special event."
 Cake Crafting
Recently some of our ESOL learners enjoyed a two day cake crafting course, where they baked and decorated a Madeira cake. This was an integration event bringing all different cultures together to share skills.
There was great feedback from the sessions, and it was fantastic to see our communities involved and making new friends and sharing ideas.
We would like to extend a huge thank you to our tutor, Trisha, who facilitated the session, and to Summerhill Community Centre who we will be working with more this year to run similar classes.
For further information please contact Rachel.Edgar@dumgal.gov.uk
 The Bridges Programmes Success
Dumfries and Galloway Council's Lifelong Learning were delighted to be working in partnership with The Bridges Programmes, Skills Development Scotland, Department of Working Pension, and Dumfries and Galloway Council Employability Support Services.
The partnership delivered a two-day course covering Working in Scotland, Personal Stocktake, Job Searching, and a CV Workshop.
The Bridges Programmes are Scotland’s specialist agency, supporting the social, educational, and economic integration of refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, and anyone for whom English is a second language. They shared their skills and knowledge with our Team and ESOL Learners.
We would like to thank the DGMA Team for hosting the event.
Following the two day course, we are glad to say that we will be offering bite-size training sessions and one to one support this year.
Holocaust Memorial Day 2023
27 January is the date of the national Holocaust Memorial Day, selected because it marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp in the second World War, The Day also remembers genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Dafur and all those affected by war and persecution.
Each year people from across the UK take part in a national moment for Holocaust Memorial Day, so at 4pm on Friday 27 January people across our nation lit candles and put them safely in their windows. This year the theme was ‘Ordinary People’ about how easy it is to turn away and let intolerance grow; but also how small acts of kindness and support by ordinary people can make a big different to people’s lives.
 Here in our region, Convener Stephen Thompson and Depute Convener Linda Dorward, of Dumfries and Galloway Council showed their support and the Dumfries & Galloway Interfaith Group held a short service at the ‘Kindertransport’ tree in Lochside Park, Castle Douglas. The Council Headquarters was lit up in purple to show solidarity and bear witness for those who have endured genocide, to honour the survivors and all those whose lives have been changed beyond recognition because of intolerance and violence.
Sad News
Many of our Hosts and Guests will know of Venus Carew through her work with the Multicultural Association, Interfaith Group, MOOL, Befrienders Association, her involvement in education at the College in Dumfries and the Peacemakers Club for young children. Venus embodied all that is good and caring in human nature and she certainly lived out the teaching of her Baha’i faith ‘let your heart burn with loving kindness for all who may cross your path’. Venus has been involved with the Resettlement Project since its inception is November 2015, being an important voice about understanding different cultures and faiths and preparing our schools and, officers and volunteers for their roles. The world is a better place for having had Venus in it, and she will be greatly missed.
 Here’s Venus receiving her Volunteer certificate from the Council’s Director Communities Derek Crichton in appreciation of her work with the Resettlement Project.
The Resettlement Team will be represented at her funeral on 9 February 2023, which will be live streamed. If anyone would like to donate to the charities that Venus supported, please do so below, and you may also wish to contribute to the online board set up for messages and photographs of Venus, which will be of great support to her family and friends during this difficult time and in the future.
Do you or your host know anyone who may be interested in hosting Ukrainian Guests?
Call for Volunteers across Scotland
People across Scotland are being asked to consider if they could open their homes to people from Ukraine as part of a new campaign to find new hosts. A new webpage has been set up to provide prospective volunteers with clear information on the application process.
We already have many offers from people in Dumfries and Galloway who want to host Ukrainian Guests, and we are working with Guests in the Welcome Hub hotels here and in Edinburgh and Glasgow to encourage Guests to move to their homes. Some Guests feel that Dumfries and Galloway is very rural and they want to stay in the city, but with your help, we can show them that this is a lovely place to live and work!
It is possible for Ukrainians already living here to be hosts for other Ukrainians, if they meet the criteria for being a host.
Cost of Living Information Update
Cost-of-living increases affect everyone, regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, geography or status. Everyone within Dumfries and Galloway will be impacted, with the real possibility of serious distress and suffering across our population.
The primary concern is those who are most vulnerable and in need, but it is important that everyone understands the effects of the cost-of-living increases on them individually, and that there is support and help available for all.
To help support our residents and ensure they can easily access the cost-of-living support they need, we have worked with partners in the Poverty and Inequalities Partnership to design and develop a brand-new website that will act as a central repository of local, national and UK-wide resources on a range of subjects including:
- Support for Income
- Help for Households
- Help Finding Work
- Families and Young People
- Older and Disabled People
- Health and Wellbeing
The new website was launched on Tuesday 22 November 2022. Look out for information not only on our social media channels but also on those of our partners.
We want to hear from you!
Reflections on being a Guest in Dumfries and Galloway – we would really like to hear from you about what you are enjoying and like most about our region. What is going well for you, and also what the challenges are and how can we help you. All views will remain anonymous and you can write to us in any language – we can get it translated. We will share your stories in a future Newsletter. Please send your views to Resettlementproject@dumgal.gov.uk
If there is any information you think may be useful, but is missing from our Support for Ukraine pages, please let us know at: Resettlementproject@dumgal.gov.uk
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