Brett Thoms
Pontiac March 19, 2022
Businesses, politicians, churches and community members from across the Pontiac have been expressing support for the people of Ukraine as the war in eastern Europe wages on.
This support is coming in a variety of forms.
The Pontiac Home Bakery in Shawville set up a fundraiser for the . . .
Canada-Ukraine foundation Humanitarian Appeal through the selling of blue and yellow cupcakes, with 50 per cent of the proceeds going to the foundation. They also set up a donation jar, where 100 per cent of the proceeds go to the foundation.
“We wanted to find the [charity] that had the most money that went back on the ground to the Ukrainian people,” said Dan Duggan, owner of the Pontiac Bakery. “And the one that we chose was in the 90 percentiles of the amount of money that went back to the people.”
The fundraiser went on for about two weeks.
At the MRC Pontiac Regional Council on Thursday the region’s mayors unanimously passed a resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine and expressed support for gestures of solidarity with the Ukrainian people. The resolution also called on the government of Canada to take all necessary measures to make Russia abandon “its bellicose attitude.”
At the same meeting Warden Jane Toller also stated she heard from at least two people in the Pontiac who would be willing to host Ukrainian refugees.
Pontiac MP Sophie Chatel, who has recently been banned from Russia along with 313 other members of the House of Commons tweeted in French “I carry this appointment to the list of “persona non grata” in Russia as a mark of honor!”
Both her and Pontiac MNA André Fortin have been vocal about their support for Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict.
On Saturday, the Pontiac Ministerial, which is a cross denomination organization representing churches from across the Pontiac, held a Prayers for Peace service at the Shawville United Church.
“It’s precipitated by the Ukrainian war, but there’s also a long running war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, a war in Syria, there are Guatemalan refugees, climate refugees, religious refugees, etc.,” said Rick Valin, Chair of the Church Council for the Shawville United Church.
All speakers at the event echoed the sentiment that the war in Ukraine was not the only conflict they were concerned about.
“War is atrocious in all circumstances,” said Reverend Eric Morin from St Paul’s Anglican Church in Shawville. “We pray that all life will be respected as much as possible.”
“It’s good for Christians of all denominations, whether they are regular church attenders or not to be able to gather together and pray over a common theme, recognizing the need of God’s intervention in the messed-up world that we live in,” said Reverend Stuart Marples, of the New Hope Church in Shawville.
The event was a drop-in service, with attendees able to hear speeches from the assembled ministers and church officials, between moments of prayer and contemplation.
As of now, there is currently no end in sight to the war in Ukraine, with fighting and bombings reported in several Ukrainian cities. The war to date has produced almost 3.5 million refugees, with more expected in the months according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
