The HALO Trust is a charity dedicated to protecting lives and restoring the livelihoods of those affected by conflict. We do this by finding and destroying landmines and other explosives left behind from conflict and teaching adults and children what to do if they find an explosive danger. HALO’s work saves and protects lives, helps refugees to return home, and allows farmers and families to safely use their land and gardens. HALO operates in 30 countries and territories such as Angola, Cambodia, Guatemala, Kosovo, Ukraine, and Zimbabwe. And 98% of our staff are employed from the communities we work in.
With your support, we can help families like Maryna’s in Ukraine live without the danger of landmines. Maryna has lived in the Lypiv Rih village in the Chernihiv region of Ukraine for her whole life. The lives of Maryna and Katya, her three-and-a-half-year-old daughter, changed forever on February 24, 2022, when Russian forces advanced through the Chernihiv region and towards their village. Maryna said, “Our relatives from other villages called us saying: ‘There is a line of military vehicles coming your way.’ Of course, we were nervous and afraid, just like everybody else, but we endured it.” Unfortunately, there was a later explosion when two local volunteers, a father and son, hit an anti-vehicle mine. This explosion occurred only few hundred meters from Maryna’s home where the wrecked car remains and is entwined with purple flowers.
Now that the Russian troops have withdrawn from this area, explosive dangers remain. And Maryna and her daughter live in fear, not knowing which land is safe. She said, “Our fear is still here. We cannot go into the bushes where we used to gather apples and cherries. What if a child steps on it? It’s a great fear because we saw what it can result in and understand how dangerous it is.”
HALO teams continue to work across the Chernihiv region and other areas of Ukraine, so that families can return to their land without the terrible fear that Maryna now lives with every day.
