The escalation of conflict in Ukraine has caused extensive destruction and forced people to flee their homes seeking safety, protection, and assistance. Two articles, one from the BBC (March 22, 2022) and the U.S. Sun Post (March 27, 2022) describe homing stories for Ukrainian refugees.


In the first week of the war, more than a million refugees from Ukraine crossed borders into neighboring countries. Many more are on the move both inside and outside the country, and they need protection and support. As the situation unfolds, an estimated 4 million people may flee Ukraine. The United States has just announced that 100,000 refugees will be allowed in this country.


This war is exceptionally agonizing to watch for the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) countries because World War II is still a powerful memory for families in Europe. The concern on so many minds is what will it take for this to become World War III? Poland has taken in the largest percentage of the refugees, and other European countries and citizens are stepping up to help.


On a much smaller scale, about 12,000 refugees have ended up in the Netherlands in several different locations. The first story that caught my attention was about the Dutch Royal Family. They donated $190,000 and a heritage site castle for eight families in which to live. Imagine that, an entire castle!


The Dutch government also sent out a request for the citizens to come up with ways to house the refugees. The Dutch responded overwhelmingly, offering over 100,000 options for housing. The Dutch government is also beginning to repurpose old unused buildings into temporary (or possibly permanent) housing for the Ukrainians.


Jakub and Gosia Golata live in the United Kingdom after emigrating from Poland in 2004. Gosia had been in Poland taking care of her sick mother when the war started. Jakub came to Poland to be with family and to also help. He began driving refugees in a minibus to and from the Ukrainian border but said he wanted to do more.


Eventually, he and his wife have rented a 180-bed hotel near Bydgoszcz, in northern Poland, for those waiting for rehoming.


"I came up with this idea that if I would be able to rent an entire hotel and place these vulnerable mothers and children in a hotel, and then allow them to settle, feel safe, looked after, and be able to come to terms with what's happening, then that would be the best thing," he said.


Both these stories are heartwarming because it exemplifies the generosity of the human spirit. Millions of refugees will need housing, and it will happen with the generosity of everyday people and even a King and Queen donating a castle.


These stories illustrate that we all have something to give when other people need help - a room with a bath, a car, clothes, and even a hotel room. During the 9/11 crisis in the United States, the federal government shut down the airspace nationwide, an unprecedented move, with hundreds of flights in progress rerouted and thousands of passengers stranded in foreign countries. Others got stuck outside the U.S. with no way home. Across the world, local people stepped up. They took American travelers into their homes, sheltering and feeding them until normal flight operations resumed.


This unconditional compassion and support for another human being is an essential part of being human. People worldwide are responding now to the war in Ukraine and stepping up to help rehome the refugees in foreign countries. One heartfelt story about a Russian man rehousing Ukrainian refugees on his alpaca farm in Virginia (U.S.) is particularly poignant.


Instead of getting distressed about all the seemingly horrible things happening in our world, do something. Don't let pain and misery define the human condition. Take action. You can make the world a better place.

Photo courtesy of Maria Teneva on Unsplash.