Dates For Your Diary

Saturday, 2

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August 2008

Summer Fete and B.B.Q. at Gallards Close

Saturday, 27

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September 2008

SAKA Summer Soiree

(Prize winners for the Summer Draw will be drawn at this event)

The Great Famines in Ukraine 1932-1933

On the flight home from Ukraine following my second visit I read a magazine article by Myroslava Barchuk outlining a story of an event I knew absolutely nothing about. It shocked me as I’m sure it will shock you if you read it. It shocked me too that, having studied history to some depth at school, I knew nothing about a terrible tragedy which killed between seven and ten million people in a European country. I determined to do whatever I could to raise awareness of the awful famines which only seventy years before had led to such slaughter in a country often referred to as “The Bread Basket of Europe”.

To appreciate why our Association is important and must continue to grow in numbers and understanding I believe we need to comprehend what Myroslava Barchuk means when he writes, “It is increasingly horrifying to realize that millions of my fellow Ukrainians who were imprisoned physically and spiritually murdered by the Soviet regime, who were killed by the Famine of 1932-1933, were not just the victims of a terrible injustice – they were the carriers of truth, mercilessly destroyed.”

Ukraine will be marking the 75th Anniversary of the Famine this year. There will be exhibitions, conferences and meetings. Much material will be published and S.A.K.A. will focus its fund-raising activities on trying to make the lives of the poor, elderly in Kaniv a little more tolerable. Amazingly there are some survivors of the Famines, who managed also to live through the “Patriotic War” of the 1940’s and the Chernobyl disaster. I hope you will be able to help us in our endeavours.

I have copies of the magazine article to which I have referred as do the Prime-Minister, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg. Our Member of Parliament, Greg Clark, hopes to put down an Early Day Motion about the 75

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Anniversary and I am very grateful for his support. Please contact me if you would like to read the article. New Committee Member, Mike Bailey, has read the article and wrote as a result “This makes very sad and disturbing reading, however, it has made me even more determined to help the Kaniv people in any way I can, and am pleased to be a member of this Association. My personal thanks for what you and the Association are doing for our Kaniv friends, I’m happy to be on-board.” That’s good to know Mike and we’re pleased you are on-board.

/ Mike Handcock

The Pearl of the Night Crimea

The Crimean peninsula is an extraordinary corner of the globe, with its inimitable variety of animals and exotic plants. The Crimea attracts everyone by its fabulous beauty and a great number of sights of historic value.

But not all people who have ever been to this peninsula are able to unveil its greatest mystery, its pearl which has been the reflection of eternal beauty in itself for many centuries. It is the Black Sea.

At the beginning of the 5

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century B.C. Herodot, having seen it, claimed: “Pont Evksinsky (this is the ancient name of the sea) is the most marvellous of all other seas.”

Furthermore, it is a unique sea as it is the only sea in the world which saltiness equals the one of human blood. What is more, a great number of myths are connected with the Black Sea. For example, a myth of a widely known Gold Runo takes its sources in this sea.

Travelling over the Black Sea, it is impossible to avert your gaze from the magnificent beauty of cliffy coasts. You begin to feel yourself a particle of nature.

When night comes, a real fairy-tale begins. The sea becomes quiet and welcoming. And the Moon, that has recently appeared, shines tender on the surface of the water. All the life of coastal cities of the Crimea is reflected in twinkling lights on the surface of the sea. You become full of feeling that the next moment you will fly!

The stars appear in the sky one by one and brightly twinkle with one another whilst the sea below splashes in its turn.

It is enough to approach the nature of the Black Sea at night to understand the profoundness of Shakespeare’s words: “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.”

/ Tanya Mitina

Editor’s Note:-

This article was inspired by a visit Tanya made to the Crimea last Summer.

Chairman’s Message

Some job changes we made at the committee meeting in February as amongst other things our current Vice Chairman, Colin Bothwell, is due to become Town Mayor of Southborough in May and will then become our President.

Bob Marsh will become our Vice Chairman and we hope someone will come forward to take over his present role as Hon. Treasurer. If this is a task you are willing to take on then please contact either Jackie or myself.

Colette Marsh has taken on responsibility of Events Organiser from Elaine Lawrence.

Mike Bailey has taken over Colette’s job as Membership Secretary – his address is 8 Gallards Close, Southborough, Tunbridge Wells, TN4 0NB.

We are most grateful to Trevor Poile, who during his term of office as Town Mayor has been a thoroughly supportive President of our Association attending nearly all of our functions helping in a host of big and small ways including opening the Fete and B.B.Q. So thank you Trevor for being an active President and for your support of the Euro-youth Project in Council.

If you haven’t yet paid your £3.00 subscription please send your cheque made out to S.A.K.A. to Mike Bailey. At the time of writing we had 29 paid up members.

Katy Lavender has a very busy school year ahead and is unable to continue as our Youth Representative, we thank her for everything she has done. We now need a new Youth Representative and would welcome anyone who feels able to take on this role.

A copy of the minutes of the AGM is attached showing details of subscriptions etc.
Mike Handcock