Over 30 churches across Carlisle have collected a quarter of a tonne of candles for people in Ukraine facing severe hardship.
Over a period of two months, congregations throughout the city and surrounding rural parishes within the Carlisle Deanery joined efforts to gather candles, which have since been transported to a special project in Wiltshire.
The Swindon Humanitarian Aid Partnership manages these shipments, ensuring the candles reach Ukrainians struggling without reliable power and heat during harsh winters.
Carolyne Baines, churchwarden at St Michael’s Burgh by Sands, initiated the collection after reading about the project.
In a statement she said: "This was something that I thought was very worthwhile and which churches could easily get involved with.
"The response to the appeal has been beyond everyone’s expectations, and an amazing 230 kilograms of candles have been collected."
The effort also received valuable support from the Rotary Club of Carlisle, which facilitated the transport of the collected candles to Swindon.
Churches within the Carlisle Rural Mission Community, as well as St George’s United Reformed Church in the city center, contributed to the initiative.
The donated candles, both new and partially used, were packed into cardboard boxes and taken to SHAP’s warehouse, where they are converted into trench candles. These are essential heat sources for Ukrainians enduring temperatures that can plunge to minus 30 degrees Celsius.
The Rev Simon Bickersteth, Vicar of St James Carlisle and Rural Dean for Carlisle Deanery, praised the initiative, saying: “It’s been wonderful to again see how churches and congregations can come together in such a practical way to support those who are facing terrible hardship.
"As Christians, we are committed to doing all we can to help those who are struggling and need support.
"As winter sets in, our prayer is that these candles bring heat for the people of Ukraine and represent to them the hope and light that we see in Jesus Christ as together we continue to pray for an end to the war in their country.”