It may not have the scenic beaches that Beaufort sports and its residents may not sip sweet tea, but the Ukrainian city of Ostroch is part of the Beaufort Region’s family. The connection comes from the work of Beaufort mayor Stephan Murray who created a Ukrainian relief fund within the City of Beaufort’s Pride of Place program. After the Russo-Ukrainian war broke out in February, Mayor Murray had a goal of mustering the community of the Beaufort region to help a similar-sized community in Ukraine. Eventually, the city of Ostroch in western Ukraine was chosen and now an official partnership exists between Ostroch and Beaufort.
Ostroch has so far been fortunate enough to escape any direct military conflict, but the city still struggles with humanitarian issues, especially food scarcity for both its citizens and the refugees which have fled the active war zones in Eastern Ukraine. The efforts of the Beaufort region have ensured that a wide array of assistance has reached Ostroch including 100,000 shelf-stable Meals-Ready-to-Eat (MREs) and thousands of pounds of grits and cornmeal, all donated from South Carolina businesses and shipped to Ukraine with the assistance of local partners and non-governmental organizations.
Fundraising efforts have also been a smash success with over $135,000 collected as of mid-August. Various community organizations have held special events to raise funds, including the Sea Island Quilters who collected more than $2,500 with a raffle of a specially made quilt dubbed “Hearts of Ukraine”. Local glass artisan Greg Rawls also donated $22,000 through the sale of a special pin sold at a Beaufort art gallery.
“We appreciate all who took this [fundraising campaign] to heart,” Mayor Murray said in August. “It’s my hope, after the war ends, that our relationship with Ostroh will lead to visits between our two cities, that over time we will get to know each other and appreciate each other even more.”
As a region with a wide variety of military installations and a large population of veterans and retirees, Beaufort has intimate knowledge of the costs and consequences of war. It is very likely that the Marines being trained at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island or the aviators at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort will travel to Europe at some point to participate in exercises and training with America’s European allies. Beaufort’s outpouring of support to Ukraine is yet another example of how the region reflects the values of its military communities and strong bonds of fellowship with patriots both in America and around the world. It is humbling to see how our local citizens have not turned a blind eye to those in the world experiencing less fortunate times than our own nation and we offer our continued thoughts and prayers to the citizens of Ostroch and all of Ukraine. Even as our troops return home from the longest wars in the nation’s history and we enjoy a period of long-awaited peace, it is humbling to see how our local citizens have not turned a blind eye to those in the world experiencing less fortunate times. We offer our thoughts and prayers to the citizens of Ostroch.
