Ukrainians welcome
I have a brother who is married to a lovely Ukrainian lass, a relationship which pre-dates the awful war launched by the putrid Putin.
I mention this only because it has brought me into close contact over the years with a number of people from that nation.
So I was not the least bit surprised to read about the Ukrainians taking over the Beach Cafe at Dunbeg.
Mariia Shcherbak and Yevheniia Khmaro reopened the cafe in SAMS Ocean Explorer Centre a couple of weeks ago and seem to be making a fine go of it.
I am not at all surprised as the many Ukrainians I’ve met are most definitely not here on the scrounge. They are, in fact, grateful to us for welcoming them and want to work hard to support themselves. Indeed, most want to go home and cannot wait to do so.
Ukrainians I’ve met contribute positively to our nation and that is to be cherished. I’m a huge fan of increased diversity and this helps considerably.
There are more than 300 Ukrainian refugees in Argyll and Bute and Mariia is the Oban representative in a committee created for Ukrainians across the area to support each other.
I hope the Beach Cafe remains open and successful.
These refugees deserve our support, so please keep enjoying the cafe and supporting their venture.
Shocking behaviour
I am not usually easily shocked but was by the report of a spike in incidents of abuse suffered by CalMac staff.
This is totally unacceptable. Yes, delays and cancellations are frustrating but that is not the fault of frontline workers.
I agree fully with Fiona Galbraith, CalMac’s area operations manager for Hebrides and Skye, who said: “No-one should have to deal with that when they are trying to do their job and I would urge everyone to treat our hard-working people with respect.”
Absolutely right; stop the abuse immediately.
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