A concert to raise money in Downton for a new 4x4 vehicle for the Ukrainian military has been sold out, though donations to the cause are still welcome.

The Saturday, November 25 event, which is on track to raise more than £3k, is the brainchild of Svitlana Kondzelia and Joe and Margaret Scicluna.

Svitlana, 49, moved to Downton with her son Ivan Mashukov, 9, in April 2022 after leaving Lyiv, Ukraine as the country was under attack by Putin.

In Ukraine, Svitlana worked as a lawyer for the government from 2007-2020, serving under five different presidents, from Viktor Yushchenko to the current Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Svitlana said she decided on the UK because it had a very favourable scheme for Ukrainians to obtain asylum and she had a sister-in-law already living in the Cardiff area with her Welsh fiancé.

When she first arrived, Svitlana had never been to Britain before in her life and had never heard of Wiltshire, not to mention the village of Downton.

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She said: “I knew about Salisbury because of the whole Skripal case and I knew about Salisbury Cathedral.”

In Downton, Svitlana got a job working at The Borough Café, where she met numerous people from around the community, whom she said were very welcoming and made her feel at home, including Margaret.

Svitlana’s first fundraiser took place at the Downton Baptist Church in February, when she cooked large amounts of Ukrainian food and raised £3.5k for purchasing haematological bandages for the Ukrainian military.

In May, Svitlana’s husband Valentyne Mashukov visited from Ukraine, where he is helping with the war effort by delivering supplies.

With a mutual interest in music, Joe, lead guitarist for the band Vintage, who will be playing at the event, showed Valentyne a video of his band playing a gig, giving birth to the idea that the band could give a charity performance to help Svitlana raise more money for Ukraine.

This time, with help from Joe and Margaret, Svitlana decided the money would go toward a new 4x4 vehicle for the Ukrainian military. Such vehicles are in great need as the rough terrain in the conflict area takes a heavy toll on them.

The Sherwood Suite at the Downton Football Clubhouse on Wick Lane was secured as a venue and 100 tickets for £10 each were quickly sold. The Lover Repair Café donated £100, The Borough Dental Practice donated £500, and The Borough Café agreed to cater the event for free. A GoFundMe page has also raised £375 from eight donations.

Margaret said: “Initially we wanted £5,000 but I think we’ll probably be nearer three. But we’ll see.”