Supporting Defenders from the other side of the world

We are a retired couple, Sue and Colin, residing in a south-east suburb of Melbourne. We first became aware of Postcards to the Front through an ABC news item and decided to get involved due to the unjust nature of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Little did we know that the conflict would still be ongoing after four years!

Although we are thousands of kilometres away and have no direct links with Ukraine, our Christian faith, which seeks to protect and assist the vulnerable, was our motivation to do our small part.

As well as writing postcards, we have tried to recruit others through the youth group of our local church and a Christian school in our region (one that agreed to get involved after several rejections from others). This was successful in providing about 150 extra cards for which we were grateful.

We imagine that Defenders are very appreciative in knowing that people on the other side of the world are thinking of them. We picture them in very basic tents with basic food, often in the snow, wondering where the next bombardment will come from.

They must also greatly miss their families and be concerned about how they are faring. Hopefully a warm greeting on the postcard will give them something positive to think about amidst much suffering.

We also try to include a sentence or two in Ukrainian (Colin is getting really good at that!) and we always add an Australian flag sticker to assist Defenders in recognizing where the card has come from. 

We met Peter Ramadge, founder of Postcards to the Front (Australia) at Flinders Street Railway Station in Melbourne last year and shared lunch while we chatted about the project. Our planned second meeting a month ago unfortunately didn’t happen due to some miscommunication; however, we really admire the commitment and perseverance of Peter (and his team), as well as the time and effort they spend each week in ensuring Postcards to the Front continues to thrive. We also appreciate the specially printed postcards that Peter has been able to supply to us recently.

Best wishes to all! Slava Ukraini!

Sue and Colin