Classic's Si Morris-Green to house Ukrainian refugees
Will PayneClassic Collection’s director of agency sales and marketing Si Morris-Green will house a Ukrainian mother and daughter who have been forced to flee the country following Russia’s invasion.
Morris-Green, who is also hosting a Come Dine With Me-style dinner party next month to raise money for people impacted by the conflict, will take in Niyara Mamontova and her seven-year-old daughter after they were forced to evacuate Kharkiv when Russian forces started bombarding the city.
The pair are currently staying with friends in the Netherlands after living underground in Ukraine for three days. Niyara’s husband, who is a surgeon, stayed behind to provide emergency medical assistance to those in need.
On Monday (14 March), the UK government launched the Homes for Ukraine scheme, which allows people to register their interest in supporting Ukrainians fleeing the war. "It’s surprising and amazing [the amount of people helping]," Niyara told BBC Breakfast.
"I never thought I would be a refugee. I had a beautiful life and a beautiful apartment. More than two million people have fled Ukraine. It’s horrible. Europe is helping us as much as they can and I really appreciate that. The people of Ukraine will never forget that."
Morris-Green said he felt "heartbroken" watching the conflict unfold over the past three weeks. "We felt really helpless so when the scheme was launched, we thought ’at least we can do something, at least we can actually help’. No human being should have to do this.
"We went online to a Facebook group, saw Niyara’s post and commented ’we have a safe home here for you’, we then chatted throughout the day, and registered to home them last night (Monday 14 March). You can’t sit back and watch this unfold and not do anything. We have warm houses with water, food, and it’s just a safe environment. It’s the least we can do."
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