Galway-based Ukrainian on his mercy missions back home

Val Sokur, a mechanic working in First Stop Knocknacarra, has been living in Ireland for over 20 years and has called Loughrea home for the last 14 years.

Shortly after Russia invaded his homeland, he made his first trip to the continent – crossing into Ukraine to meet his 34-year-old daughter and his granddaughter to bring them to safety.

Since then, he’s made two further trips to take his extended family from the bloodshed, including his son’s wife, his daughter’s mother-in-law and some of his cousins – two of which are children aged eleven and four.

Speaking to the Connacht Tribune from the refugee centre in Dublin this week shortly after he returned, Val says he has been struggling to find nearby accommodation for any of them – seven people were holed up in his house in Loughrea, including his wife and younger son, and that was before he returned with his five cousins.

“I’ve been trying to deal with the Red Cross but it’s difficult. In Loughrea; the Bishop has provided a house that a priest used to live in but it’s been given over to the Red Cross. The Bishop has given a letter to say he would like it to be made available to us but there has been no answer,” says Val, explaining that his family would like to be close so they could support each other after what was a very traumatic time.

“I will take them home to my house in Loughrea but we don’t know if they will get accommodation afterwards. It would be fine if we knew it was for    two weeks or three weeks or even a month, but we just don’t know.”

He says as things are being dealt with centrally by the Red Cross, they have been told his family members may be sent elsewhere in the country and the was a need for flexibility for those in a similar situation to him – particularly as if they were close by, he could provide supports to them.

Read the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now – or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie