On a rainy morning on July 25th, a convoy of vehicles left the doorway of the Ukrainian Embassy in London for Ukraine, where they are sorely needed.
One of those vehicles was very special to us. It was one that our The Ray of Hope project had worked so hard for, one that would save the lives of disabled people in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine.
Our colleagues in Ukraine have named this ambulance YuVIK (ЮВІК in Ukrainian), and they eagerly await its arrival.
The name honours Yulia, Volodymyr, Iryna, and Kira, the volunteers who tirelessly worked to make this mission of evacuating disabled individuals living near the frontline possible.
The need for such vehicles escalated after the full-scale invasion but has grown enormously. The Ukrainian government announced the evacuation from near-frontline settlements, and many charities and volunteers joined this work. So did our Ukrainian partner charity, Yedina Kraina 2022 (Unighted Country 2022), and soon they realised there was no way to evacuate elderly and disabled people other than using specially designed vehicles, such as ambulances. Still, there were no such cars left available for evacuation. Some of them were destroyed, and some are extensively in use. And here was a moment when our community group, named "Stand for Ukraine Brighton and Hove", and volunteer initiative "The Ray of Hope", stepped up.
We worked day and night, running fundraising events and Justgiving campaigns to raise the sum needed to purchase the vehicle and cover some of the cost of delivering it to Ukraine.
When we purchased it and sent the first photos to our colleagues in Ukraine, they could not hold back tears—the vehicle was ideal, with its ramp to load stretchers, soft springs, and boxes to store medical equipment.
We loaded it with aid as dense as we could. Each box we loaded bore a heartwarming sticker: "Gifted with love by the Brighton and Hove community,
It was a touching reminder of the care and support extended to those in need in a country that had been unjustly attacked.
Thanks to fantastic Chris Monks, YuVIK has safely arrived in Lviv, and now she is preparing to travel to its final destination.
We are grateful to all those who made this project come true.
Thank You, Chris Monks Mike and Natalia, from Swindon Humanitarian Aid Partnership, Jean Semmencenor, Vladyslav Babych, BrightLocal, Amira Wiseman, West Blatchington Primary School Summer Holiday Camp, Mike, Josh Madden, and all our generous donors and restless volunteers! Special thanks to Julia Poljakova and Vlad Polliakov, Iryna Olyanovska and Chris Tomas, Kira Makogon and Borys Stepchentko.
But the war continues, and the need for help for Ukraine grows as the country exhausts its resources. Therefore, we continue to fundraise. We partnered with Pickup for Pease Charity to purchase another ambulance and send it to those who badly need it in Ukraine. Please consider donating to our Just Giving campaign to help us provide critical aid to those most in need.
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