Meet the Ukrainian family living in Bognor Regis who have been delivering supplies to refugees

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Appalled by events in their home country, a Ukrainian family living in Bognor Regis has been delivering much-needed supplies to refugees on the border.

It's a long drive to Ukraine. First you take the M20 to Folkestone and board the Eurotunnel to France. Then it's a 23 hour drive through Belgium, Germany and Poland to the border. It's hundreds of miles of open road, countless passport checks, and gallons of gas.

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It would be long, hard and arduous even if you weren't driving into a war, but that's exactly what Mariya James and her family have done twice now, with a third trip planned for Saturday.

"When it all started, it was my sister Roma who decided we need to do a little bit more then watch the news and cry," said Olah Payne, Mariya's daughter.

Mariya James with family in UkraineMariya James with family in Ukraine
Mariya James with family in Ukraine

"It's a long journey, and I know there's a lot of support out there, but it's so close to home that we had to do something."

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Mariya first moved to the UK from Ukraine 25 years ago, and now owns Boutique Roma: a fashion retailer in the Bognor Regis arcade. She has a life here, a family, but seeing Russian invaders march into her homeland brought on renewed sympathy for friends and relatives back home.

Desperate to help, the family filled their 2x4 car with donations from across the community. Food, sleeping bags, body warmers, woolly hats, sanitary towels and anything else that might help found themselves in the boot of the family car, bound for the Polish Border. They went twice. First, Mrs James went on her own and, the second time, she was joined by her eldest daughter Roma Hilditch.

Both times, they saw first-hand the extent of the suffering in Ukraine.

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"The first two times my mum and my sister went and they donated to the refugees on the border, people with literally nowhere else to go," Olah said.

"It's really organised there because in Poland there's a shelter where people can stay for a few days, but then they need to move on. And it's really difficult because some people leave home with nothing more than a backpack. So they were just incredibly grateful for anything they could get and for anyone who's willing to support them."

When Mariya sets out again this Saturday, this time with Olah in tow, they're hoping to help even more people, to put supplies in the hands of those still trapped in Ukraine.

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"This time, we'll pass everything we have over to someone we know in Ukraine and they're going to drop them off to all the places that really need it," Olah explained.

"Obviously, on the border it's safe, but there are so many people still out there who don't have food, who don't have water, who are freezing cold."

Olah, like the rest of her family, is keenly aware of the risks wrapped up in driving so close to a warzone, but she doesn't think she's doing anything more than what needs to be done. "A colleague at work said 'oh you are really brave,' but it's not about being brave. We're just trying to do the right thing."

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