Refugee walking 589-miles from Swindon to Scotland in aid of Ukraine
Sofiia speaks to ITV News West Country
A Ukrainian refugee living in Swindon is preparing to embark on a huge 589-mile challenge - walking from Swindon to the UK's highest peak, Ben Nevis in Scotland.
Sofiia Volovyk hopes to raise £100,000, with half of the money going to help Ukraniains that have arrived across the UK and the other half to a charity that supports people on the ground in the war-torn country.
She is leaving for the walk on Wednesday (24 August) - Ukraine's National 'Independence Day'.
Sofiia settled in Swindon as part of the Homes for Ukraine Scheme.
She had to flee her city of Kyiv in March, two weeks after the war began. She travelled through five countries and more than 3,000 miles through Poland, Germany, Belgium, and Ireland before finally arriving in the UK.
“We travelled on so many buses and trains and received amazing gifts of shelter from families along the way,” said Sofiia.
“After seven weeks of travelling, we finally arrived in London and travelled to Swindon to the new host.”
With the help of other hosts and newly arrived Ukrainians, Sofiia created the Swindon Welcomes Ukraine committee to help support and integrate the Ukrainian refugees into the community.
The committee has been working to secure extra English classes and more than 100 free bikes which were fixed up from donations for the refugees that have settled in the area. They are also helping Ukrainians to find work locally as well as bringing the community together for arts and music events.
Sofiia will be joined on her walk by a fellow Ukrainian, Borys Livshtys, who is an ultra-distance walker from Ukraine. The pair met at an organised hiking event in 2020 in Kyiv.
Both Sofiia and Borys have found success in walking challenges before with Sofiia achieving a personal record of 100km (62 miles) in 25 hours and Borys setting a 2021 record in Ukraine by walking 255km (158 miles) without sleep or food in only 71 hours.
Sofiia's journey to Scotland should take 25 days to complete and will wind through countryside, hills and rough terrain, before finally ascending the challenging peak of Ben Nevis.
"It's a long way but I have a great team. We have been planning this route and journey for months. There's a team of 10 people, we are considering all the risks so we are ready. Of course, it's challenging, but we are ready for this journey."
Along the way, Sofiia hopes to also unite and meet up with other Ukrainian community groups similar to Swindon Welcomes Ukraine, which have been created since the Homes for Ukraine scheme was set up.
Sofiia said: “This journey, other than fundraising, is deeply routed in my personal values of Freedom and Independence, ingrained in me from a young age. Ukraine, as a nation, had to fight for its independence many years ago and now our fight for freedom from oppression has never been greater. Ukrainians have become modern-day pilgrims and so my challenge represents our collective journey to safety.
"We would like to contribute to the local culture and the local society. We would like to learn the language.
"We would like to show our culture and learn more about British culture."
Leaving behind many friends and family in Ukraine was hard.
She said: “Some people just didn’t want to leave their country and I understand that feeling.
"The Ukrainians we have left behind us face bombing, face evacuation processes, face the lack of humanitarian sources.
"I have been so welcomed by the people of the UK, and so I am dedicating this walk to help those we left behind, and also those that have landed and settled here.
"It is my dream to build a positive Ukrainian community here in the UK, and help rebuild the one back home too.”
Sofiia will carry a live tracker and will be live blogging daily along the route.