As a sign of respect and solidarity this week, a Ukrainian flag supplied by Ukrainians currently living in Ilkley, was raised in Ilkley's Riverside Park.
The flag is beside the twining flag and is with the support of David Lynch of Ilkley Petanque Group.
At the Ilkley Town Council meeting on Monday, Councillors agreed that a Ukrainian flag should also fly on Brook Street on this Friday 7th March.
Larisa Korol, one of the 70+ Ukrainians currently in Ilkley and a member of the Ilkley Ukraine Support Group, who attended the Council meeting said:
“Thank you very much for your decision to support us again, this is really very important for all of us. The Ukrainian flag is not just a flag - this is a piece of our homeland, this is the blue sky and yellow wheat fields of Ukraine, this is a sign that we are not alone in the UK and we feel support both; here, from you and in Ukraine from your government and volunteers”.
[Stepan Pundiev, a Ukrainian living in Ilkley, at the Pétanque area in the park]
Ilkley Town Mayor, Cllr Damian Kearns said
“On Friday morning at 8am, Ilkley Town Council will raise the Ukrainian flag on Brook Street as a gesture of solidarity with the people of Ukraine and our Ukrainian Community in Ilkley. It is a small mark of respect and a reminder of the suffering of all those people displaced by conflict across the globe’.
The Ilkley area welcomed many Ukrainians as part of the ‘Homes for Ukraine Scheme’, and the town has been very generous with its support both practically and emotionally. Many families, individuals and local groups have, and continue to, offer their support and friendship. The majority of the people here are now living independently and are working, with children attending local schools, as well as being involved in local voluntary groups within the town.
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