UKRAINE: Portuguese pupils study hard so Ukrainian children can attend summer camp

A group of Portuguese girls buckled down to work to raise hundreds of pounds so Ukrainian children could attend summer camps.

Members of the Darca Club, a students’ organisation linked to Opus Dei, undertook a sponsored study to raise money for Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

The plight of Ukrainian children, suffering almost daily attacks by Russia since the full-blown invasion in 2022, touched the hearts of the Portuguese students, who decided to offer help.

For every hour of solid study, with no mobile phones or any distraction, the girls were awarded €1 (c. 87 pence).

Darca’s Maria do Rosário Almeida e Sousa, who encouraged the students, told ACN: “We wanted to get them to study better, but we also hoped that their effort could benefit needy children, or those who are in difficult situations.

“They come to us because they know that we are strict, and they can study better. That means no cheating. They couldn’t study for 45 or 55 minutes, it had to be a full hour, and it had to be proper studying, with no interruptions or cell phones.”

The money was provided by the Maria José and João Gagliardini Graça Foundation, a social enterprise company in Portugal that aims to build a more inclusive society.

Through hard graft the Darca girls raised more than €500 (c. £433) which enabled 285 young people from four parishes in the Kamyanets-Podilsky Diocese, in western Ukraine.

Every year, around 100,000 children, teenagers and young adults around the world get the opportunity to escape from situations of poverty, persecution and war for a few days at ACN-backed summer camps.

Bishop Leon Dubravskyi of Kamyanets-Podilskyi expressed his gratitude to ACN and the young benefactors.
He said: “Children and young people are especially vulnerable to war, pain, and the loss of loved ones. We want to help them during this difficult period, organising holidays where they can get some physical rest, but also spiritual support and hope.

“Many of these children and young people had unforgettable experiences in these camps and were able to get away from the war and constant air strikes, at least for a short period of time, while also deepening their relationship with God.”