Maks gets behind appeal to deliver a ‘gift of hope’ to children in war torn Ukraine

A TU Tallaght pharmaceutical student forced to flee from Kyiv and leave his mother behind four years ago is behind a rallying call to deliver a ‘gift of hope’ to children in his war-torn homeland.

22-year-old Maks Hudyma is getting behind the annual shoebox appeal from Team Hope, a charity that delivers gifts into the hands of children affected by poverty, from homes across the country to ensure they get a gift on the holiday.

Maks received a Christmas shoebox filled with gifts from kind strangers at the age of 12 and is now urging people to back an effort to get thousands of Irish boxes to Ukrainian kids as war continues to rage.

The third-year pharmaceutical student at the local third-level campus on Blessington Road described the Russian invasion of the country on February 24, 2022.

He said: “I remember that night so vividly. I woke up at 5am and heard a very loud bang. I looked out from my bedroom window, and I thought to myself: ‘What’s going on here?’

‘Then I saw and heard loud explosions, fire and smoke. We were living across from a forest where there was a military base.

“I got so scared and it really freaked me out. I started to crawl across the room and started shaking. I panicked and felt very fragile and couldn’t control my feelings.

“People had been saying that we were living in Europe in the 21st century and that no one would want to start a war.”

The night of terror led to a heartbreaking decision by his mother Oksana and himself that he should travel to Ireland alone to escape the war, and now he lives in Co. Wicklow and studies in the local area.

Some of the student’s Ukrainian school friends from back in Kyiv have been killed fighting Russian forces.

Maks plans to send a Team Hope Christmas Shoebox from Ireland to Ukraine, including table tennis bats and ping pong ball and urged others to do so.

Maks described the memory of receiving one of Team Hope’s shoeboxes: “I remember getting one shoebox. It had sweets, school supplies, pencils, toothpaste and notebooks, which were all very handy.

“It made me feel very special. I was getting these gifts from people that didn’t even know me.”

Since 2010 over 3 million Christmas shoeboxes have been delivered to children affected by poverty across the world.

Ukraine is one of 13 countries in Eastern Europe and Africa wherein Team Hope aims to deliver 200,000 Irish shoeboxes to before Christmas.

Gifts are able to be sent to girls and boys between the ages of two and 14, and school supplies, toiletries, clothing and accessories, as well as toys such as skipping rope, toy cars and stuffed animals are welcomed.

The completed box, sealed with its lid and an elastic band for good measure can be sent to a child in another part of the globe.

Completed shoeboxes can be handed over at 400 drop-off points nationwide, or at any Mr Price outlet in Ireland, between Sunday, November 1 and Tuesday, November 10.

Alternatively, people can donate €25 for a box to be made up, right up until Christmas Eve.

To get involved, log on to Team Hope.

Team Hope CEO Deborah Lowry said: “What makes Maks’ story so special is that he knows exactly what it feels like to receive a shoebox from someone you’ve never met.

“Years later, he’s now in Ireland preparing a gift for another child in Ukraine. It’s a wonderful reminder that a simple act of kindness can stay with someone for a lifetime.”