COULD you host a child from Belarus next summer for Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline?

Sherry Ellis, Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline, said: ‘This year we had the pleasure of hosting eight children from Kamarin, Belarus and, as always, we had a lot of fun. But despite appearances, their visit is not just about having fun.

‘It is about giving them a respite from the appalling conditions they still have to contend with. Many of the children who come to Britain appear healthy, but this is deceptive as the radiation will affect where they live for hundreds of years and so they are subjected daily to the long-term effects of incessant radiation.

‘Their plight is worsened by a difficult economic situation, a shortage of medical facilities and medicine, poor living conditions, poor nutrition, contaminated food, unemployment, challenging family circumstances, social hardship as well as long harsh winters, and, as a result, generally poor health.

‘The respite we offer the children means that when they come to the UK they can eat fresh food, breathe clean air and go home with their immune systems recharged.’

Children from Belarus are brought to the South Hams every year by Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline, where they get the chance to experience new things, their first trip to the seaside, their first trip on a boat, their first ice-cream, dentist, opticians and doctors check-ups, all while absorbing the fresh, clean air.

Sherry continued: ‘We very much hope that the children’s experiences with us in the South Hams will give them the boost they so desperately need so they return home with renewed enthusiasm and confidence and with a better outlook for the future.’

The Totnes and South Hams Link of Chernobyl Children Lifeline will be inviting up to ten children to visit us in June and July next year. They urgently need more host families who would be prepared to look after two 9 or 10-year-old children, boys or girls, for two weeks for either the last two weeks of June or the first two weeks of July.

The children are accompanied by a leader from their area and there is a programme of activities arranged for them. You will also have support through their visit.

Sherry added: ‘We are a mixed, social group who work as a team and although it can be a tiring two weeks you will find the experience enjoyable and fun.’

If you can’t host, CCLL are also looking for supporters to help ‘in many and varied ways’. The host families need to be organised early in order for the red tape to be cleared before the children arrive in the summer.

If you think you might be able to help, contact Sue on 01548 561783 or e-mail: [email protected]. For more information you can visit the website: www.ccll.org.uk/totnes