Thursday, February 5, 10:00 p.m.

Christine Schneider-Heinz and Michael Heinz from Eggenburg, Lower Austria, received a short message from the Focolare community in Kiev: it expressed an urgent need for winter clothes for people in Ukraine. The couple have long been committed to helping refugees from different countries, organizing accommodation in their town and helping with initial needs. They immediately knew who to ask for help.

Friday, February 6 – even before morning coffee

The first messages and requests were sent out. The first went to a friend who works in the nearby shoe factory and who already had organised donations of shoe several times. By 10 am he confirmed 100 pairs of winter shoes, including transport to Eggenburg.

Friday 6 February – 11:30 am

A message was posted in their WhatsApp Status and sent to their friends in the vicinity: “bring warm clothes and shoes for people in Ukraine to the presbytery of the Catholic parish this evening, between 18:00-20:00”.

Friday, February 6 – 6:00 pm

Christine and Michael had already gone through their wardrobes and went to the presbytery with the first bags, equipped with labels in English and Ukrainian to pack and label everything.

What awaited them was incredible: an overwhelming display of solidarity and readiness to help. The Mayor had shared the appeal on the municipal app, the parish through the parish app and many people had spread the message through their Status and networks.

People arrived with single jackets, with full boxes, bags and cartons. Some brought items while others accepted them, sorted them, packed and labelled them. Young people from Kharkiv and Afghanistan, women from Kiev and Eggenburg worked side by side.

Some families returning directly from their ski holiday spontaneously brought their ski equipment and thermal clothing. A man took off his expensive down jacket, left it there and went home in his shirt sleeves. People who didn’t know each other stayed to help and everyone was happy to contribute. By 22:30 two minibuses were already loaded.

Saturday, February 7, early morning

The first two minibuses left for Vienna, where the material was delivered to the collection point. Meanwhile, the work of sorting, labelling and packing continued at the Eggenburg presbytery. At 14:00 a third minibus left for Vienna.

Donations came from all over and a variety of people participated: the current Mayor and two former Mayors, the pastoral assistant and a German teacher, an Afghan pizza chef and other shopkeepers, parents with their children and pensioners.

There was a deep sense of warmth between everyone: some people embraced while others shyly left their bags at the door and slipped away.

Someone wrote:
“Something like this makes you hope that humanity can still change course. You could feel the willingness to help when we heard the news from a bombed and freezing Kiev. Then someone started to help and suddenly a little miracle happened”.

Saturday 7 February @ 5 p.m.

Over a ton of donations was sorted, packed, labelled, loaded and delivered to the collection point for Ukraine. 27 hours had passed since the appeal was received. The entrance to the presbytery was empty once more and back to normal. Was it a dream? No. But perhaps Eggenburg truly experienced a little miracle.

By Christine Schneider-Heinz
https://fokolar-bewegung.at/nachrichten/die-magie-des-augenblicks

Photo: © Sepp Schachinger, Michael Heinz