Travel Retail United humanitarian project for Ukraine gains strong momentum

UKRAINE. Travel Retail United, a humanitarian fundraising campaign started by The Moodie Davitt Report to help the Ukraine relief effort, is gaining strong traction among the travel retail community

As reported, all revenues raised from the strictly non-political project will go to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal in association with the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC). Donations will help families living as refugees with food, water, hygiene items and other vital supplies.

International travel retail powerhouse Dufry yesterday swung its considerable weight behind the project. Over 20 other organisations and individuals have reached out to pledge to the campaign while many others have been in touch for details of the project (shown below).

Besides the anonymous contributors (see below for details of how you can support the project), donors to date include travel retail veteran and former BAA Group Retail Director Brian Collie; Rowena Holland of Essential Communications; Anne and John Kavanagh of Kavanagh Communications; Miami-based perfumes & cosmetics travel retail distributor Essence Corp; Heidi Van Roon of the Spark Group of Companies (read her moving personal story here). We will bring you details of others in future stories.

Essence Corp has made a generous donation and in a contribution to the Travel Retail United publication, Co-Founder and Vice President Patricia Bona will tell the moving story of how in 2016 her cousin Cristina Castelli’s daughter, based in Lugano, Switzerland, adopted a seven year-old Ukrainian boy called Tiberio from an orphanage in Kyiv.

“The war has made him question his feeling of security and unconditional love that surrounds him. He wonders if the children in the institution and his family are safe. He is scared again,” writes Patricia.

Cristina, who is Director of the Resilience Research Unit, and her family recently collected first aid and medicines and travelled to the Poland border where they were met by a group of nuns (pictured right) who are working to help the Ukrainian people.

Amid the sadness and hardship, there is a joyful conclusion to this story, which Patricia relates in the Travel Retail United publication (out in April).

Travel Retail United details

  • Donors can pledge anonymously

Or

  • As reported, The Moodie Davitt Report is also producing a special apolitical publication to accompany the project. Instead of traditional advertising, donors (individuals or companies) can provide an image (photo, painting or drawing) or a piece of writing (poem, excerpt or original message) to appear besides a subtly positioned brand logo (if required).

There is no fixed price for any donation or advertisement but please be as generous as possible. The Moodie Davitt Report will be making a substantial cash donation as well as absorbing all freelance design, editorial and distribution costs. Every cent raised will go to the fund with appropriate documentation provided to each donor.

To donate/pledge or for more details, please contact Martin Moodie at Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com

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