UKRAINIAN MEMORIAL EXHIBITION – ANGELS OF UKRAINE
At 5pm on Wednesday 12 July, members of the community of Ukrainians who have come to stay in Newbury under the Government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme, unveiled a temporary exhibit on the wall of Newbury Town Hall in the Market Place.
The exhibit consists of yellow and blue ‘angels’, handmade by Ukrainian women, and each one represents a child that has been killed in Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022. This memorial to the child victims of the war was first exhibited in Slovakia in 2022. At the time there were 241 ‘angels’ represented by handmade dolls. The exhibit has since been displayed in others cities in Slovakia, Cyprus, Germany and the UK, and sadly the number of child victims has been increasing, and the current number on display is a shocking 494 angels, each one representing the loss of a Ukrainian child.
The exhibit will stay in place on the wall of Newbury Town Hall until Monday 17 July.
From Newbury, the ‘Angels of Ukraine’ will be going to Portugal, and on to other countries around the world.
The Mayor of Newbury, Cllr Nigel Foot, who attended the unveiling said, “It was a privilege to be part of this event, but incredibly sad. We must remember all those who have suffered so much”.
The Ukrainian women organizing the exhibition say, “Our goal is to show people all over the World how cruel and senseless war is. And that each of us has the right to live in peace, without evil and violence, and calmly raise our children, putting into their hearts only goodness, light and respect for human life, love for people and the world in which they live."
Local organiser Nataly Bush added:
“Ukrainians want to thank the people of Great Britain for helping us, supporting us, for not being indifferent to our pain. We thank the residents of Newbury for making it possible to hold this exhibition in memory of the "Angels of Ukraine", in particular Newbury Town Council for hosting the exhibition and EJM Tree Services for helping us to install it. We thank you!”
Contacts:
Cllr Nigel Foot, Mayor of Newbury nigel.foot@newbury.gov.uk 07970 790773
