By Eric Blaisdell
TIMES ARGUS
MONTPELIER, Vt. — State officials held a candlelight vigil on the State House steps Tuesday in support of Ukraine.
Gov. Phil Scott signed a bill at the event that will send over $640,000 to an organization that will help those in the Eastern European country that was recently invaded by Russia.
Around 150 people attended the Freedom & Unity Vigil. Some in the crowd held signs or waved flags of blue and yellow, the colors on Ukraine’s flag. The front of the State House was bathed in blue and yellow light.
The governor said Vermont stands united with the people of Ukraine for their democracy and independence.
Scott noted the weather wasn’t great for a vigil, with temperatures in the 40s and rain in the forecast, but he said those in Ukraine are facing similar weather, some without power or heat or a roof over their head.
“For two and a half weeks, we’ve all watched in horror as (Vladimir) Putin’s Russia ruthlessly attacks a neighbor who wanted peace, not war. Thousands of Ukrainian patriots and civilians, including women and children, have already lost their lives. Millions have had to leave their homes, their belongings and their way of life to protect their families,” Scott said.
The governor said residents have watched as Russians and their mercenaries attacked a maternity hospital and other civilian targets.
He said people are seeing in real time how this invasion is a real threat to democracy.
“It has been said before, a threat to democracies anywhere is a threat to democracy everywhere,” Scott said.
The governor said at the same time there also have been inspiring acts of courage and resolve by Ukrainians. He said they are defending their homes against an army five times their size.
He recalled a story about a Ukrainian father who left his 7-year-old daughter so he could fight against the Russians who said, “It was a difficult choice. Better that she be without a father than without a future.”
Scott said Tuesday’s vigil was being played in front of the Ukrainian Parliament thanks to Roman Kokodyniak, a Ukrainian-American who lives in Vermont with connections in Ukraine. The governor said they are still passing legislation there despite being involved in a war.
The governor said Ukraine has the power of truth and the moral high ground on its side which is why the rest of the free world needs to have its back.
Lt. Gov. Molly Gray said during the past 20 days residents have seen Ukrainians in subway stations, walking a marathon to get to a border and crossing bridges and rivers with children.
“Putin’s actions not only threaten the very institutions and laws Russia and the international community came together to establish after World War II to prevent human suffering, but also international peace and security as we know it,” Gray said.
She said no matter their differences or which political party they belong two, on Tuesday night residents stood together united as Vermonters with Ukraine and against Russia’s attack on Ukraine’s sovereignty.
House Speaker Jill Krowinski said fighting for liberty and justice is something this country was founded on.
“While we have a tremendous amount of work to do to make Vermont and this country a more equitable place for all, we share the values of the Ukrainian people and their fight for autonomy and their right to exist as their own nation,” Krowinski said.
She said this state is known for its principles on local democracy. The speaker said it was heartbreaking to see the work of the Ukrainians in establishing a democratic government upended in an unprovoked attack.
Krowinski said Vermonters have a long history of supporting each other in difficult times. She said residents organized to collect food and medical supplies for those in New Orleans impacted by Hurricane Katrina, rallied for impacted towns here after Tropical Storm Irene and deployed troops to Washington D.C. to support peace.
“We do what we can to pick people up after they have fallen down and support those that need it most. Ukrainians need our support,” she said.
Senate Pro Tem Becca Balint said while residents are thinking about Ukraine and what its people are going through, their hearts also are with Russian mothers and fathers whose children are fighting a war they knew nothing about when they were sent into Ukraine.
“Who have been lied to by the most malevolent of tyrants,” she said.
The governor then signed H.717 into law which will send $644,826 to Save the Children, a global humanitarian aid organization. Of that money, $643,077 represents one dollar from every Vermonter and the remaining $1,749 is the amount of funds collected by the state Department of Liquor and Lottery for the sale of Russian-sourced products since the start of the invasion.
Gary Shaye, a lead adviser at Save the Children, said his organization has been working in Ukraine since 2014 and it has good relationships with the people there.
Shaye said Tuesday the organization received some good news from Ukraine.
He said a partner organization, Save the Children Italy, learned of 21 orphans in Ukraine who were in a vulnerable state. Shaye said the person who ran the orphanage wanted to get the children out of the country.
He said a few days later, they learned about another group of 41 children who were in an equally bad situation.
Shaye said in less than a week the organization successfully got all of those children out of Ukraine and into Italy safely with all of the official permissions necessary from the countries involved.
“It was all made possible because of good relationships that we’ve been able to establish and the relationships of all the government officials dealing with children,” he said.
The governor said he knows the money is a small gesture, but this is not something Vermont has done before and he hoped it will inspire other states to take similar steps. Scott said if states could rally together around a common cause, they could make a real difference.
eric.blaisdell @timesargus.com
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