OUR FIRST VEHICLE IN 2026 DELIVERED TO KHARKIV
(Journeys are listed chronologically, the most recent being towards the bottom of this page)
Our friend Andriy was returning to Kharkiv from a visit to Glasgow, so he offered to drive the small Renault van back for us, together with around £12,000 of valuable medical supplies, to be distributed once we had arrived a few weeks later. I drove the van to Hull whilst Iain picked him up and we all met on the M6 then continued on to the ferry terminal.
Andriy had not driven this route to Kharkiv before but he left with a confident smile and arrived safely in Kharkiv. He stored the supplies and, as a matter of urgency, delivered the van to the community which had lost the previously delivered fire van in a drone strike.
THREE VEHICLES TO KHARKIV
As this is Iain Gordon’s last trip out I thought he should write this article...
I may have said previously that I had done my last trip but this time, sadly, this is definitely the case. There comes a time when the stress and anxiety involved in planning, preparing and executing these trips does catch up with you and when it starts impacting your own normal life then it is time to re-evaluate I`m afraid. I am proud of what we have all achieved.
It has been 4 years and 21 trips completed with some 28 ambulances, disability minibuses, 4x4 jeeps, vans and others donated, all stuffed full of essential much needed aid. The total worth of everything is probably around £400,000.
The trip I have just returned from saw 3 of us depart with a large van and two 4 wheel drive vehicles. We sailed out from Hull to Rotterdam on 20th of February. We travelled through Europe and entered Ukraine around 6am on the 23rd. We then had sub zero temperatures and roads totally destroyed by the frost and snow leaving deep pot holes covering most of the roads. This added many hours to our daily drives and brought our speed down by half. We weighed each vehicle in Hull before boarding the ferry and the big van was 3680kg, the Kuga 2340kg and the Volvo just short of 3 tonne!
Andy from Kirkcudbright and Simon from Coventry were my companions on this trip but unfortunately by the time we reached an overnight stop, around 100km before Kyiv, I was informed by Simon that he could not continue and would be going home from there. This just proves that this type of mission is not easy and not suited to everyone. ( Simon did make it home safely but not quickly ) We left the Volvo he had been driving there to be collected later before our trip was finished, which it was.
The other issue we had was the power steering on the Kuga packed up just before Hull so Andy had to drive it all the way to Kharkiv like this as we did not have time to wait for a repair during the journey. It was fully repaired in just one day after we arrived.
Next morning Andy and I continued our journey and arrived at a maternity hospital just outside Kharkiv on the morning of 25th. I had originally planned to have 15 baby boxes for them but ended up with 31! These were given out by us and hospital staff to new mums along with many new blankets and clothing and baby items. They were delighted with everything.
Later that day we entered the city of Kharkiv and went to visit Artem. This is a 9 year old boy who saved his grandmother just a few months ago when their apartment was damaged and on fire after an attack. He was able to call the fire service and rescue guys, telling them where they were while he comforted his grandmother. Help arrived and got them both out of the apartment safely.
We presented Artem with a certificate of bravery from Scottish Fire guys and a new bicycle and many gifts. He was shocked but overjoyed with his gifts and his mum was there thanking us profoundly and in floods of tears, which of course left me in floods of tears.
This little boy and his family were told by us that they were not alone. We and our communities back home and people everywhere were standing with them and sending hope and love to them. I don`t think Artem will ever forget this visit and will speak of it throughout his life. These little things are so important for everyone.
The next day saw a huge amount of hospital supplies given to 2 main surgical and primary care hospitals in Kharkiv, with us being told that at least 70 percent of our items were desperately needed right now. We had 3 new electric hospital beds among other things.
At one of these hospitals while standing outside entrance beside our big van, which had an 8 foot by 4 foot Ukrainian flag sticker on the sides, we observed a Shaheed drone circle above us looking for a target. These are very large drones which do a huge amount of damage with a large explosion and sound like a moped when flying. Luckily for us, but not for others unfortunately, it acquired a target just along the road.
Another day and another large delivery to an oncology hospital and also a powered Stryker stretcher and manual vehicle ramp given to the rescue team in the city who will adapt a smaller van with this so it can be used in effect as an ambulance.
Then it was on to the First Responder rescue guys in the city to hand over 15 sets of new paw protectors, 6 new harnesses and several bags of specific dog food and treats for the rescue dogs. These dogs are extremely well trained to climb over and into the rubble at the scenes of rocket and drone attacks looking for survivors and bodies. These really are the 4 legged heroes! They were extremely happy with these and were put to use straight away as attacks were happening then and constantly since.
The following day we visited Katerina, the 97 year old lady who refused to evacuate from her village just a few kilometres from what is now the front line. She still tends to her huge garden and grows potatoes, onions, leeks and more. We gave her some new warm clothing, hot water bottles, chemical hand & foot warmers and also a new 4 wheeled lightweight pull along garden cart to help her in her garden. She was wearing the warm fur coat we had given her on last trip. As usual she was overcome with emotion which meant I was also. She has previously stated that nobody in her life has done as much for her as we have been these past few years.
We also went back to visit Volodimir, the ex soldier who took 7 bullets in 2022 saving a mum and child which left him paralysed on his right side. We had already given him an electric mobility scooter previously and then we found out he supports "Celtic" football club! Well, we had to make an effort after knowing this. So, with the help of R.C. Wallace and a large amount of Celtic scarfs, tops etc. donated by the members of Stranraer Shamrock Celtic Supporters Club, we handed over a large amount of club items and personal gifts from friends locally. He was absolutely delighted with everything. Again one of the little personal things we can do which makes all the difference. He is a true definition of the word "hero"
The Volvo had now been collected from where it had been left and we started handing over the vehicles to their recipients:
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The large van went to a military unit to help support them.
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The Ford Kuga 4x4 was handed over to a military medical unit who work right at front line saving lives. This car was full of urgent essential trauma supplies, which alone will help save many lives.
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The Volvo 4x4 was given to a psychology team leader for use by him and his guys who deal with military, police, rescue workers etc. with ongoing trauma issues.
During our 6 days in Kharkiv it was constant air alert alarm sounding and we witnessed many drone and rockets attacks with some nearby. One night, when we had another Shaheed drone above our accommodation I yet again began to wonder if I would be going home. Attacks do happen during the day, but the waves of rockets and drones usually arrive either just after midnight until around 1am and again from around 4am until around 6am.
We only had 6 days of this but these people have to live with this day and night 385 days a year, constant attacks, resulting in so much death and destruction. We also had to endure the lack of electricity and heat for much of our stay, just as most Ukrainians are experiencing.
On the final day we were honoured to be invited to lunch by my good friend Olekzander who part owns a large hotel, part of the Kharkiv Metalist football stadium, was mayor of his local town and a very high ranking influential person in his day. We also met the head of the Military Administration for Kharkiv region and other very important people, who all thanked us for our efforts .
This turned out to be another great trip with so much help being given by us from the people of Dumfries & Galloway. We had a huge amount of medical supplies with this coming from, not only Dumfries, but also from Yorkshire Ambulance Service and hospitals throughout the Yorkshire county, which we had made 2 trips to collect when organising this trip. The total worth of vehicles and aid on this trip alone probably amounted to around £75,000.
We started our journey home on Tuesday 3rd March with a 16 hour train ride, a 7 hour bus and a 3 hour flight then 2 further buses from Edinburgh to Stranraer/Kirkcudbright, to get home on the evening of 6th March.
I want to say a HUGE thank you to every single person who has helped me during this last 4 years on all of these trips and I know for sure I can extend this thanks from everyone in Ukraine who has received this help. I have made some wonderful friends over there and along with the horrible memories of things seen, I have some very special memories of some of the ‘personal’ touches made.
So, a huge thanks to you all and please remember, this was not me, this was all of you who have donated which has made all this possible over these last 4 years. I was just taking your help to these people and I do not regret a single moment. It has been an honour and privilege to be an ambassador of our community to the country of Ukraine.
This was our greatest achievement so far, including being able to negotiate the broken roads safely. Iain has done so much to help the Ukrainian people who I know will not forget him. Well done Iain.
MY APRIL JOURNEY TO SUMY - THE REALITY
It had been more than a year since I delivered my first ambulance which had taken me two years to raise the funds for. Iain Gordon from Stranraer came with me and guided me throughout the drive, explaining about the custom borders, the roads and the checkpoints. It felt a little surreal, as the city itself seemed too alive and working as normal. Many buildings were damaged, yet the people seemed to go about their business as if nothing was different, as if the war had not reached them.
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This latest visit was very different. The whole atmosphere had changed. As determined as the people of Sumy are, the strain of constant bombardment was starting to show. Even though Ukraine appears to be turning the tide on Russia’s war, everywhere there are constant reminders of the loss so many have had to deal with.
Since my first visit here we have been concentrating on deliveries to Kharkiv, a city of five times Sumy’s population and size yet, both being near the Russian border, they both have received as many ballistic missiles and drones. It was clearly more devastating and apparent in Sumy.
The first hint of this was when I was heading towards the Medical College to deliver new baby and children’s clothes and a giant teddy bear called Edwina. The GPS signal went down and the satnav went wild, a means of confusing Russian drones. I only managed to reach my destination by going ‘old school’ and mapping my way there.
When I arrived I was treated to two hours of entertainment by the students, including song, traditional dance and wooden spoon playing. I presented Edwina to an orphaned student, then everyone helped me offload the many bags of clothes which will be distributed amongst the community. It was a very uplifting experience. Olena, who had organised all of this, was amazed at the quality of the new baby clothes, blankets and toys; “the best they have ever had”.
I had the use of an apartment that night and the next day I was given a tour of the college which trains school leavers on their first steps to a medical career. In the afternoon I set off for Sumy to deliver the 4x4 Kia and trailer, together with a huge 8m x 4m tent to be used as a medical station, other medical equipment and bags of adult clothes for those in need.
The GPS went off again, though the road was straight and took me directly into the city where I found my hotel with help from Dasha and others, my guides for the next few days. We parked the car in a compound some distance away, “to avoid being hit”. But even then I found things to be relatively normal, until that night. There were so many explosions that it was difficult to get any sleep.
The next morning I was picked up and we rushed to see if the car was still intact. It was, but less than 100m away a block of flats had been devastated and a sports centre completely demolished. There were broken window frames and masonry everywhere, volunteers were sweeping up the shards of glass and people were walking around dazed. All the surrounding small houses, trees and some 20+ cars were burnt out and there was a smell of soot in the air. This turned out to be the result of a hit from just two drones and three more had landed in this neighbourhood that night.
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To stay safe we drove on to a large park area where the medical crew loaded the tent, generator and other medical equipment onto their pickup and then on to its new home. Later that day I met Sergey, who spoke good English, so he could translate for me.
First we visited a dog rescue centre run by a husband and wife team. They spend every day feeding and caring for 50 stray dogs at this centre plus another hundred elsewhere, whilst trying to find them safe new homes. As with all volunteers they are desperately short of funding, so Dasha took them bags of dog food and treats.
We then set off for a military checkpoint where the car and trailer were officially handed over to be used to evacuate wounded from the front line areas. They were desperate for suitable vehicles and could not thank me enough.
Another night of heavy bombing and the next day I was to be picked up and driven to the bus station for my next stop in Kyiv (trains had become too dangerous a target to travel on). But not before I was shown around the town and seen many universities, museums and public buildings which had been hit and were now just shells of buildings. Knowledge seems a dangerous thing to Russians.
It was sad saying goodbye to my new friends, but I assured them i would be back in two months with a van full of aid. So I am appealing to you all for as-new summer and winter clothing for adults and children, any medical items, non prescription medications, hygiene and sanitary items, hair products, washing powder, cleaning supplies and personal hygiene products, etc. All these items are a lifeline to the people here and your donations are so gratefully received.
I had only been in Sumy for two days but I now felt a part of a greater family of volunteers who work hard 365 days of the year to help their community and will never give up. I cannot let them down.
As ever, we always need funds to make these aid trips possible. I realise that times are hard but if you can spare any funds you can donate through the bank account, details on the ‘Contact’ page.