Ephrata couple creates tartan to support Ukraine

EPHRATA — An Ephrata couple is combining their heritages in a unique way to support Ukraine by creating an official Scottish-inspired tartan in support of Ukraine.

“The response from the kilt community has been incredible,” Kelly said. “People are raving about it. They love the design, they love how it looks and, of course, they love that it's for a good cause.”

Shortly after the conflict in Ukraine started, Lidiya and Kelly Clear knew they wanted to help in any way they could. Bringing Kelly’s Scottish heritage and Lidiya’s Ukrainian roots together, the couple came up with the idea to see if a kilt company in Utah, that Kelly had been a customer of for more than 10 years, would sell a Ukrainian-themed kilt and donate the proceeds to a Ukrainian charity. The company, UT Kilts, liked the idea and worked with the Clears to bring the tartan to life and make it available on their website.

Initially, they looked into using a tartan, or plaid woven pattern, that was already available that had Ukrainian colors but the owner of the tartan turned them down. It was at that point that it was suggested that the Clears create their own tartan, Kelly said.

They named their tartan “Under Ukrainian Skies” and it features blue, gold and black. The Clears explained that the blue represents the sky, yellow for the wheat fields and black for the rich soil.

From reaching out to the owner and founder of UT Kilts, Brice Lythgoe, to the kilt being produced took only about a month, Kelly said.

“Under Ukrainian Skies” can be bought in two different styles of kilts, other related garments or even just by the yard of fabric.

Kelly said UT Kilts agreed to sell the tartan under the premise that all proceeds would be directly donated to the Youth With A Mission base in Ternopil, Ukraine. An exact amount isn’t available but the website states that UT Kilts estimates the proceeds are around 30% of the total purchase price.

“We don’t see a dime of this,” said Kelly. “We designed the tartan, we’re promoting it because UT Kilts has been so generous in giving so much money towards Ukraine.”

Lidiya said they asked to have the donations sent to YWAM because it is a nonprofit missionary organization that she was a part of when she was younger. There are two YWAM bases in Ukraine, one in Kyiv and one in Ternopil. They specifically chose the Ternopil base because Lidiya worked there and has people she still knows at that location and because it is the one that is taking care of a lot of the people fleeing from Eastern and Central Ukraine. The base provides many different forms of aid to those in need, including food and clothing. Ternopil is located on the Western side of Ukraine, not far from the Polish border.

Kelly first became interested in kilts as a teenager thanks to the movie ‘Braveheart.' It wasn’t until later through genealogy and a DNA test that Kelly found out about his Scottish heritage which only fueled his interest in kilts.

Lidiya grew up in Ukraine and has family and friends still in the country. She said that while they are helping all that they can, in more ways than just the tartan, she plans to go to Ukraine this year to help in person. She is a registered nurse and wants to use her skills to make a difference.

The description under every ‘Under Ukrainian Skies’ item on the UT Kilts website has a small description about the tartan and the Clear family.

“Lidiya hopes for this design to provide hope and inspiration for her country, as well as serve as a reminder to the world of the strength of the Ukrainian people. We WILL have our freedom!!," the description said.

The tartan can be found at www.utkilts.com by searching “Under Ukrainian Skies.”

Rebecca Pettingill may be reached at rpettingill@columbiabasinherald.com.