05 Sep Essex man collects 74 laptops to help Ukrainian children in Poland access schooling
Essex man Peter Boolkah has collected 74 laptops for the Ukrainian Women and children displaced in Poland. The Laptops 4 Livelihoods campaign he set up has now distributed the laptops with the help of volunteer and charity worker Faye Savage. Many of the laptops have come from Wilsonhcg and mean that refugee families can access remote education and work after fleeing their homes earlier this year. At the end of this month Peter is going over to Poland to visit the women and children benefiting from the laptops as well as take more over, would you be interested in coming with us at all or covering it?
The second-hand laptops that Peter has sourced have been given to both the International Bund Polska and the Slavic Mission in Poland which is accommodating 3,500 displaced Ukrainian women and children. Through the laptops those children are now able to access their learning online. Many of their mums are also able to work remotely and learn Polish. Peter says It is clear that we need to help the women and children of Ukraine move forward. “The women need to earn money to support their families and the children need to continue to learn – we know how much we relied on technology during the pandemic. The war is not ending anytime soon and we must continue to look at what the refugees need. Laptops 4 Livelihoods is all about rebuilding people’s lives.”
Faye Savage (originally from Bristol but now living in Krakow) has helped Peter on the Laptops 4 Livelihoods campaign and says the people there need long term help now which is why this continuing campaign is so important. “Many left in a hurry and weren’t able to bring laptops with them. They left behind jobs and the children left behind their schooling. The children are still being taught remotely from teachers either still inside Ukraine or in Poland so there is a desperate need for more laptops.”
Here in the UK laptops can be received by post or drop in at Shoulder of Mutton near Colchester details on the Laptops 4 Livelihoods page. All laptops received are being professionally cleared of data without it being accessed, by Halstead company https://secureitad.co.uk/. In Poland the laptops are being cleared free of charge by PEGA.
