Ukrainians’ first Galway Christmas – so far from home

As they celebrated the festive season last year, the almost 3,800 Ukrainians who have arrived in Galway since February couldn’t have foreseen what 2022 would hold for them.

But over the past ten months, locals have opened their homes and hearts to offer refuge to those facing unimaginable turmoil as their homeland is torn apart by war.

One of the early Galway residents to offer up a safe haven to those fleeing the war was Barry Haughian who, just before St Patrick’s Day, welcomed nine Ukrainian refugees to Ballindooley Castle on the outskirts of the city.

Since then, the 15th century castle has provided a home to 16 people at various times, all women and children, with any spaces that freed up soon filled by others making the painful decision to leave their home behind.

For Armagh man Barry, who bought the castle around five years ago, there hasn’t been a dull moment since he drove across Europe to bring the first group to safety – collecting them from Poland which became the epicentre of the refugee crisis unfolding on the continent earlier this year.

“Myself and my wife were chatting the other evening and we said to each other, ‘what just happened this year?’,” says Barry, who separates his time between Ireland and Madrid with his wife, Lola, and two children.

In the early days after the first group of Ukrainians arrived at the castle, the focus was on finding schools and jobs, which took time.

Since then, there have been a few changes, with some moving on and others coming to fill the spaces left behind.

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