When the Duchess of York visited the Tikva children’s home and schools in Odessa ten years ago, she was presented with a bouquet by young student Vika Gashenkho.

Much has happened since then, particularly in the past year, with the charity’s fraught evacuation of 4,500 children, alumni, staff and other community members following the Russian invasion and operations resuming in Romania.

But the two were reunited in central London on Thursday at Tikva UK’s first dinner in four years, which raised £1.8 million.

Proposing the royal toast, the duchess recalled that she had “wanted to feel and smell and be with kindness”. Her visit to Odessa had been “a complete joy” and the opportunities afforded Gashenkho, who was rescued from a life of extreme poverty, were “an example of what Tikva does”.

The duchess told the JC: “Tivka lives up to its belief about bravery, hope, strength and courage - especially hope.

“I was lucky enough to go to Odessa all those years ago and what I saw was that although you are abandoned, although you have nothing, you actually have everything with the Tikva family.”

She had remained in contact - “that’s why I am here tonight. You can’t make Mary Poppins promises. You make a promise to show up and you do.”

Delivering the night’s appeal, an emotional Gashenkho said she never knew her father; her mother couldn’t cope. “I don’t know how we survived.”

Tikva became her family and “the only home I knew”.

Thanks to its support, she had “all the tools to become independent” and now had “a teaching job that I love.

“Tikva is more than a home. It’s a future.”

Ronan Keating, Spurs and England defender Eric Dier and Made in Chelsea’s Mark-Francis Vandelli were also among a star-studded guest list at the dinner, held at the Carlton Tower Jumeirah in Knightsbridge.

Its theme was “unbreakable”, and the spirit of the charity was highlighted in the dinner brochure message of UK CEO Karen Bodenstein. She wrote that until visiting its transplanted operations in Romania, “I couldn’t quite comprehend what people had lost. It took a while to process the highs and lows, the devastation, the relief and the overwhelming feeling of uncertainty. But also the miracles.

“What the team at Tikva have achieved in the past year is like nothing I’ve witnessed before and is truly astounding.”

Of the 4,500 transported to safety, some went to Israel, others were not previously known to Tikva but helped to flee the war-ravaged country.

The community in Romania has relocated from the Black Sea resort of Neptun to Bucharest, where it currently comprises 1,000 people, around 270 of them children.

However, 200 children and their families remain in Odessa and rely on Tikva’s support, primarily food aid, as do 1,200 elderly community members.

And its search and rescue team continues to bring in new children – “unfortunately, abuse, neglect and poverty doesn’t stop because there’s a war”.

Meanwhile, the duchess is pledging to further her links with Tikva by visiting its Romanian base. A request has gone in and “hopefully we will be there by the end of the summer”.