Until a few days ago Nikolaj had never been out of his town, close to Kiev; while now he has already taken three trains, two buses and walked 10 km. In his days of rest at the Salesians in Warsaw he met other children and smiled again. "Thanks to the Salesians for welcoming us with love and allowing us to rest for two days before continuing our journey," his mother, Marianna, testified to Alberto López, of "Misiones Salesianas."

Fr Ryndzionek, for his part, has a past that sees him emotionally very involved in this war: he was a missionary for 13 years in Odessa, Ukraine, and had previously served in Russia. A few days ago, along with another 90-year-old Salesian, he helped Salesians in formation and young volunteers load a trailer with humanitarian aid for Ukraine.

In the Salesian centers many refugees are welcomed and helped. Overall, in the 4 Polish Provinces, there are more than 600, in Slovakia there are 150, in Hungary there are 110 beds, between Pelifoldszentkereszt and Kazincbarcika...

And while the Salesians work looking beyond the emergency - by organizing educational activities for Ukrainian minors and Polish language courses for refugees, so that adults can look for work - for their part, the hosted families organize themselves and work together to make their spaces more welcoming. They take turns cleaning the common areas, setting and clearing the table, cooking typical Ukrainian dishes for everyone.... And they also participate in religious activities with the Salesian communities. "It's the only way we can thank them for all they're doing for us," says Olga, who arrived in Krakow 15 days ago with her three children.

"We never thought we would feel so welcomed and helped in Poland. Everyone asks us what we need," adds Milenka, who arrived in Krakow two weeks ago. A few days ago with the rest of the family she had entered a bar to get a hot drink, and the bar owner not only didn't charge them, but also gave them money and found a job for her and a kindergarten for her son. When she thinks back on all this, Milenka says that God is helping them realize their plans, in a different way than they thought, and she cries "because of the gratitude and generosity we felt around us."

In fact, Salesian generosity is truly great and continues to manifest itself in Ukraine, in neighboring countries and throughout the world. In Ukraine itself, help is experienced among those in need: it is received from the countries further west and sent to the homes further east. Fr Ivan Mazurkevych, Economer of the Vice Province of Greek Catholic Ukraine (UKR), reports this from Lviv. "From Slovakia the Salesians sent the necessary items for the refugees. Now we have everything we need to accommodate people... Even the people fleeing the war during this period have decreased and many were able to find a place to sleep. Then, our volunteers in our communities collect the stuff and food and send it to the east of Ukraine, to the most affected cities, where there is a lack of food and necessary things."

In addition, all Salesian works in the UKR Vice Province are taking in refugees (almost 300 people, in total) or giving temporary hospitality in the basements. From the work in Dnipro, then, at least three times a week, humanitarian aid is brought to the areas closest to the border with Russia, and on the return journey, families with children who wish to leave that area and begin the journey towards the west are loaded.

As for the rest of the world, Salesian solidarity is truly capable of involving so many people and achieving great results. The Community of the Don Bosco Mission, the 28th group of the Salesian Family, is organizing shipments of materials to Presov, Slovakia, for the Ukraine, and is also coordinating the reception of refugees in Italian families that have made themselves available.

In the last few days, the Irish Province (IRL), the Province of Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta (ICP) and the German Salesians "Don Bosco Mission" and "Don Bosco Mondo Bonn" have sent money collections and earmarked funds for very important projects. They are looking at both the emergency, with food support, the purchase of beds and medicines, and at the medium term, with projects of extended reception.

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