St. Nicholas Train will deliver over 33,000 gifts to children in de-occupied regions

"St. Nicholas Train" was launched by Ukrzaliznytsia Railways and the UNICEF Children's Fund. More than 33,000 gifts for children from the de-occupied territories will be delivered in three trains.

Ukrzaliznytsia reports this on Facebook.

According to the head of the UNICEF office in Ukraine, Murat Shahin, the rights of 7 million Ukrainian children are violated every day due to the war.

"This train carries hope, joy, and childhood to the regions most affected by the war and where children are perhaps the most waiting for a miracle. More than 30 thousand children in these regions will receive UNICEF briefcases with school supplies and, at the same time, the opportunity to continue learning and believe in the best," he explained.

The carrier was told that a theatrical performance would be shown in one of the carriages, where the "iron residence" of St. Nicholas was arranged.

"This year, the Ukrainian sky is closed for the flight of a sleigh with gifts, so St. Nicholas will arrive on the Ukrzaliznytsia train.

These railways saved more than 1 million children this year, but today, in addition to rescuing, it brings a holiday," said Oleksandr Kamyshin, chairman of the board of Ukrzaliznytsia.

The first train left for the Donetsk region on December 19. Then the gifts will be sent to the Kharkiv region, Mykolaiv, and Kherson.

Part of the gifts will be given directly to the military-civilian administrations, distributing the kits according to the lists of children under ten years old. This primarily concerns those children who cannot come to the station.

Ukrzaliznytsia warned that the exact time of the train's arrival might change for security reasons, and it will be announced directly by the Central Railway Administration in the region.

Tickets to Victory Train

The Tickets to Victory project was launched in November.

You can join the promotion and buy tickets here.

Anyone who wants to can buy a charity ticket for the first three trains from Kyiv to five cities: the already liberated Kherson, as well as to Mariupol, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Simferopol.

Ukrainians bought 1,000 tickets to the liberated cities in one day.

The route will open after the liberation of the city or region from temporary occupation.

The rides will be by the legendary Train to Victory, the carriages dedicated to the exploits of people in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.