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Mission of Innocents Helps Displaced Children Rediscover Joy

Mission of Innocents Children onboard ship

Over 40 years ago, Landry & Kling became the first company to specialize in corporate meetings and events on cruise ships. Today, our expanded global services include sourcing long-term vessel charters for special projects, such as humanitarian aid.

In 2022, the Scottish Government appointed Landry & Kling Global Ship Solutions to provide ship-based housing for an influx of Ukrainian refugees in Glasgow and Edinburgh. We rapidly secured two accommodation vessels to house over two thousand Ukrainians forced to flee their homes. 

Joyce Landry, CEO of Landry & Kling, relocated to Scotland to manage the project and lived onboard the accommodation vessels alongside displaced Ukrainians. She soon recognized an urgent need to support the socioemotional well-being of the nearly 800 children living onboard the ships (pictured above on one of the ships).

Children's program onboard one of the Ukrainian refugee ships.
Children's program onboard one of the Ukrainian refugee ships.
Joyce sprang into action and helped create a children’s program onboard both ships to encourage self-expression and healing using music, dance, art, and sports. The experience of watching the children find joy again deeply affected Joyce and the Landry & Kling team and led to the formation of the nonprofit Mission of Innocents. The 501(c)(3) organization’s mission is to nurture the self-worth of children displaced from their homes due to war, political or economic instability, and environmental disasters.
Ukrainian children's Christmas concert onboard their accommodation ship.
Although the two accommodation vessels have departed Scotland, the children’s programs continue to thrive on land. Partnering with local community organizations, Mission of Innocents provides daily enrichment programming for Ukrainian children who have resettled with their families in Scotland.
Mission of Innocents, Children's Choir
The Ukrainian children’s choir has been invited to perform at numerous prestigious events in venues that include the Royal Lyceum Theatre and the Scottish Parliament in honor of Ukraine Independence Day. Most recently, the group traveled to London to perform at the Embassy of Ukraine at the invitation of Inna Prystaiko, wife of the Ambassador for Ukraine, Vadym Prystaiko.
Children's Choir at the Ukrainian Embassy in London.
The Children's Choir at the Ukrainian Embassy in London.

At Landry & Kling, we are inspired by the courage and resilience of the refugee children. We support Mission of Innocents and the nonprofit’s commitment to bring smiles, laughter, and hope back into the lives of displaced children worldwide. To learn more about Mission of Innocents, visit https://www.missionofinnocents.org/.

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