Help families far from home this Christmas
Home is a special place, all year round.
And as Christmas approaches, it becomes even more cherished. The yearning for a familiar, safe place, surrounded by loved ones is a feeling we all share.
Now imagine if coming home was just a dream. If you had been forced to leave everything behind, not knowing if you could ever return.
Imagine being forced to walk for days to escape conflict. This is the reality for millions of families this Christmas.
In Gaza, Palestinian families are under siege without regular access to food, water and medical care. Forced from their homes by constant shelling.
Parents across Ukraine look to the sky in fear of the next attack. And worry if their children will survive the night. As night time temperatures fall as low as -20c many fear freezing to death.
But with your help we can provide hope to thousands of families left in darkness. With your help we can save lives this Christmas.
With your support we can be there for families in need.
Your support means people left with absolutely nothing can survive far from home.
With your support GOAL teams can continue to provide hope to families in the world's poorest communities. In the most dangerous conflicts. Delivering food, water and medical support.
With your help we can save lives. Because that's what GOALies do.
Please donate today and help deliver critical support to families in need this Christmas.
GOAL teams are delivering life saving support this Christmas
Supporting families in need this Christmas: Katya's Story
“Very heavy shelling began in my town. You did not know where the next shell would land,” Katya says.
Looking to the skies in fear, Katya was desperate to escape the Russian shelling.
“Our neighbour was volunteering with the evacuation effort, driving people out of the city in his car. We asked him for help - to bring us somewhere, anywhere.”
After days travelling, Katya, her mother and son Maksym, found safe haven at GOAL's displacement centre in Lubny. Dozens of families now call the centre home.
“On the way here, we stayed overnight in Pavlohrad, then in Dnipro, but nowhere was safe. We were advised to come here to Poltava. We were told families would be safer here,” Katya says.
“We are glad to have the support of the kind people in this centre. We just hear air-raid alerts, but thank God the shelling isn't affecting here. This town is very small. We like it because of that. It’s not a target."
GOAL are working with local partners to provide food, shelter and psychological support to families like Katya's in Ukraine.
The family are safe, but Katya worries about her son Maksym. When he’ll be able to return to school and play with other children again.
She dreams of returning home to rebuild her life. To allow her son to restart his education and reach his full potential.
“We are very grateful for GOAL’s support. But our dream is to return home. To a normal life,” Katya says.