A BELARUSIAN girl is looking forward to spending a summer holiday in north county Dublin after arriving in Ireland from one of the affected regions of Chernobyl.
As part of the Summer Rest & Recuperation programme, Maryna will be spending four weeks with Trina Gilchriest and her partner Peter Rooney at their home in Oldtown.
Maryna, who had been waiting excitedly to board the flight from Minsk to Shannon since her first visit to Ireland at Christmas, travelled the 3,000-mile journey to meet up with her host family. She lives in a remote institution in Vesnova, south east of Belarus.
Trina, chairperson of North Dublin Chernobyl Children International, and her group have been involved in a large number of fundraising ventures to make these holidays happen.
“Maryna came to stay with us at Christmas and had a wonderful time,
? she told Northside People.
“I couldn’t believe how well she adapted. She is a very independent girl and we’re delighted to have her back.
“We’re hoping that her experiences with us will help to bring her on.
“She went out in a boat from Howth to Dun Laoghaire on Tuesday and had a great time.
“It was great to see her experience things we sometimes take for granted like the sea, as she comes from a landlocked country and this was new to her.
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Trina, who has been involved with Chernobyl Children’s International (CCI) for the last five years, volunteers at an orphanage in Vesnova four times a year for a week at a time.
Vesnova is home to approximately 170 children and young adults, many who have been confined to institutional care since they were babies.
Maryna has a physical disability but it doesn’t hold her back from enjoying life and she has blossomed into a loving little girl.
Trina and her team of volunteers start organising for the summer holidays around September every year to raise funds for the children’s travel costs from their homeland.
Maryna is the fifth child that Trina has taken into her home, and is one of eight who will be spending their summer holidays on the Northside this year.
Adi Roche, voluntary chief executive, CCI, said that despite the difficult economic circumstances many families find themselves in Ireland, the volunteers have opened their hearts and their homes to children who desperately need their help.
“While the Chernobyl accident happened almost 30 years ago the consequences last forever,
? said Ms Roche.
“My heartfelt gratitude to the volunteers who offer hope to the children who the world has largely forgotten.
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During their stay in Ireland, the children will gain respite from the high levels of radiation to which they continue to be exposed as a result of the Chernobyl explosion.
The summer is a particularly dangerous time in the Chernobyl regions as the intense heat contributes to the redistribution of radioactive materials.
The newest threat of a forest fire is also a danger for these children as forests around the nuclear plant are only decaying at a rate of 40 per cent due to the lack of living organisms such as bacteria, worms and insects whose job it is to feed on dead organisms.
The greatest concern is that should the trees catch fire, radioactive material would spread beyond the off limits zone to the 1,000 square-miles around the decommissioned facility located 68 miles north of Kiev.
The arrival of this summer’s children brings the total number of children who have benefited under the scheme to over 24,700 children since the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. A month in Ireland with clean air and food can add up to two years to the life of a child.