A BIG thank you to all your readers who made contributions to our Shoebox Appeal.

Your generous donations have now undertaken the first leg of their journey.

They have been taken to the Lions central warehouse in Sheerness to be amalgamated with shoeboxes collected by other Lions Clubs in the south east of England.

From there they will make their journey to Gomel in Belarus in September.

We are also grateful to TMC Gas Power, which again kindly agreed to act as our collection point, and to Boots, West Wickham, which donated cosmetics.

Biggin Hill & Westerham Lions Club has been taking part in the Shoebox Appeal for Belarus for approximately 10 years.

The Shoebox Appeal is in fact just part of a programme of support for Belarus.

The Lions Clubs of the South East of England last year supported the formation of a Lions Club in Belarus which helps us better understand and address the needs of those still living with the devastation caused by the Chernobyl disaster of 1986.