Ukraine: Friends climb Snowdon in heels to help refugees

Ania Kwiecnska, Agata Reliszka, Agnieszka Nowak-Hek, Slawka Kluszczynska-Stepien and Zofia Szarek united for the climb

A group of friends have climbed Snowdon in their heels to raise money for Ukrainian refugees.

Slawka Kluszczynska-Stepien and her friends, from Lancashire, have raised more than £3,600 to support the humanitarian efforts in the country.

The women, who are originally from Poland, felt compelled to act following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

With her hometown 225km (140 miles) away, Ms Kluszczynska-Stepien said the conflict felt "very close to home".

"We can still remember how it is to live behind the iron curtain and being unable to have freedom of speech and freedom of movement," she said.

"We don't want this for Ukrainians or the rest of Europe."

The women say they took on the challenge in heels to attract attention for their campaign to help refugees

Ms Kluszczynska-Stepien, a family group conference coordinator for Lancashire County Council, and two of her friends climbed to the top of the highest mountain in Wales wearing their high heeled boots.

They were accompanied by two other friends who wore more traditional hiking boots and carried food supplies.

"We also wanted to raise awareness about the conflict and the situation so we felt that challenging ourselves to hike up Snowdon in heels could help," she said.

All the funds raised will go directly to the Polish Humanitarian Action, a Polish-based charity that currently works at the border providing immediate help to refugees from Ukraine.

War in Ukraine: More coverage

• LIVE: Latest updates from on the ground

• OCCUPIED CITY: 'We are not co-operating'

• RUSSIA MOTHERS: 'How do I get my soldier son back?'

• EXPLAINED: Why Putin has invaded Ukraine?

• IN DEPTH: Full coverage of the conflict

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