A Quebecer who will be on his second humanitarian trip to Ukraine next May says he has felt the need and seen the misery the Ukrainian community has been in since the Russian invasion began two years ago.
When Derek Blouin-Perry of Quebec City packed his bags to travel to Ukraine last November, he didn't really know what to expect. However, the latter only had one goal in mind: to help. However, for a month he was very affected by seeing the war from the inside.
“It is a shock to see small children and daycare workers just running down the street despite the flight alarm and siren before returning to the air raid shelter for the third time that day,” he said.
“Photo provided by Derek Blouin-Perry”
The man, who has been working as an adventure tourism guide for SÉPAQ in Gaspésie for several years, explains that he has approached the front on several occasions where he had to be careful not to be found by the enemy.
“It is terrible in Kherson. The city is virtually deserted, with about 20% of the population remaining and it is worthy of a horror film. “You walk through the streets and you hear explosions all the time,” he explains.
“Photo provided by Derek Blouin-Perry”
“It is sad to say that people still live there even though there is nothing left and all the grocery stores have been bombed. We arrived there with trucks full of rock-hard bread and bottles of water and they were desperate to have some,” the traveler added.
Coming close to death
He says he was particularly sad when, during his visit to Lviv, a city in western Ukraine, he saw a cemetery containing dozens of soldiers' graves. A reality that is by no means specific to this small town.
“How can we remain unmoved about this? The worst thing is that it is just a cemetery and is far from the front. There were such in every city we visited,” says Mr Blouin-Perry.
“Photo provided by Derek Blouin-Perry”
“We also went to a small village with a few hundred people where there is no water or electricity. There were three funerals in the two hours we were there and we were told it was like this almost every day,” he adds sadly.
It's hard to sit idle
Even if he returns to a hostile zone for an entire month in May, he remains aware of the dangers this poses when he has not heard from two of his friends for several weeks. The only information he has received so far is that two foreign volunteers died recently.
“Yes, it's dangerous, but it's hard not to go back after what I saw. What chances do we have over the course of our lives to make a real difference in such a situation?” he asks himself.
“In the face of so much pain and suffering, one cannot allow oneself to be afraid. It is their life, their home, their country and it is all they have, so it is difficult to see that and sit idly by,” concluded Mr Blouin-Perry.
Can you share information about this story?
Write to us or call us directly at 1 800-63SCOOP.