Chamblee book drive to help sister city in Ukraine

CHAMBLEE, Ga. — A city in DeKalb County just started filling a library with books.

They’re trying to help children in their “sister city” in Ukraine.

Chamblee Mayor Brian Mock looked at the map of Ukraine.

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“There are troops. Troops on every highway. You have to go through numerous checkpoints,” Mock told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen.

He saw it with his own eyes during a visit last year.

“It looked just like you’d expect something a missile dropped on would look like. It was obliterated.”

It was in the city of Kovel in Ukraine.

“The heat was so hot from the fire that it was melting the firefighters’ suits that were putting out the fire,” the mayor said.

It was the day the mayor arrived there last fall.

Kovel is Chamblee’s sister city.

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In DeKalb County, an effort is now underway to help by filling a library with books - a book drive for Kovel.

The goal is 1,000 books for starters and 10,000 overall.

There is a donation box for books at Chamblee City Hall and an entire room at the DeKalb Public Library branch along Clairmont Road.

The mayor says his counterpart in Kovel specifically requested books for the youngest children to those fighting to preserve their freedom - printed in English.

“They are very eager to learn English. They understand it will help them rebuild their country to be bigger and better than what it was before,” Mock said.

To learn how to help, look here: https://www.ukrainianatlanta.org/donation

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