OPINION: Harrogate district responds to Ukraine invasion in usual thoughtful and kind manner - Nick Hancock, Your Harrogate

As you may know I am a positive and upbeat person. I love what I do and feel very lucky to have some very special people around me.

I must admit though I have found the last couple of weeks pretty tough. One of the most challenging things for me is to find the right balance between reflecting how listeners are feeling about the situation in Ukraine and being a cheerful distraction for people who need a bit of a morale boost.

The first thing I wanted to say is it is ok not to listen. If you, like many of us find the news a bit overwhelming you should give yourself a break. Don’t listen to the news if it will upset you.

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Try and limit the amount of time you’re on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Most importantly try and distract yourself with fresh air, a phone call with a friend or something else you enjoy doing. Finally (and this advice isn’t for everyone) but in our house we find a couple of Gins really help!

Don’t feel guilty about feeling good and don’t feel anxious that you’re not watching or reading the News. It all carries on.

As with Covid we have been inundated at Your Harrogate with some amazing local ideas to support people in the Ukraine. One of the most special things about the Harrogate district is how thoughtful, kind and generous so many people round here can be.

Stockeld Park got in touch to say they will donate £10,000 to children in Ukraine by giving a share of their ticket sales over Easter. Amanda at Hales Bar then rallied around to begin collecting useful items such as toiletries, nappies, dry goods and household items.

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They will be filling a lorry with all the stuff they have collected at Crescent Road.

Sarah Barry at Harrogate Town was in touch to see how the club could support some of the local initiatives that we were broadcasting.

My friend Guy from Harrogate Brigante Rotary emailed to ask us to mention they were going to open a special café at St Peter’s Church on Saturday with all profits donated to the Ukrainian refugees. This actually raised over £1500.

Big thanks to all the Rotary members who gave up their time to make this event a real success.

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A woman called Hannah who owns the Harrogate Dog Walking and Pet Company rang to announce she is organising a special Dog Walk on Saturday, March 27 at Hookstone. I like the fact this a fun way we can all do our bit to support the Ukraine. It is yet another positive initiative in the Harrogate district.

We can’t change what is happening in the Ukraine right now.

It is very distressing and some of the pictures of families that I have seen on social media are deeply upsetting. It may take some time before we hear some more positive news.

However we should take pride in how Harrogate has responded and we should all try and do our bit to support the Ukraine.