‘EVEN IF THEIR HOUSE HAD BEEN HIT BY ROCKETS THEY STILL WELCOMED US’
Ecologists make five trips to war-torn Ukraine with vital aid
A COUPLE have told how they have made five trips to war-torn Ukraine to deliver vital food and medical supplies to the ‘nicest people you will ever meet’.
Nathan Rimmer, aged 33, and his partner Becky Freeman, aged 35, have travelled from their their home in Slindon, near Eccleshall with food, clothes and medical supplies.
And they say families in Ukraine invite them to stay in their bombdamaged homes as they are so grateful for the donations.
Now the couple – both ecologists – are hoping to travel to the wartorn country for a sixth time.
Nathan said: “For me it was like Russia is the school bully and Ukraine is the little kid and I felt I had to do something.
“At the time it all started I, like many, thought it would only be a few weeks before Ukraine would fall but they have carried on to a point now where they have the upper hand, I guess.
“We just wanted to do our bit and help out where we could. And we’ve noticed things have been getting worse each time we go to Ukraine, but this may also be because each time we are trying to push further and further into the country towards the front line.”
The couple have met several Ukrainians who are appreciative of their endeavours.
Nathan said: “They are so thankful and the nicest people you will ever meet.
“Everybody wants you to come into their house. Even if its been battered by Russian rockets or debris from nearby, you are always welcome in some way.
“Every time we go to a different place there is somebody there with a meal waiting for us.
“We’ve come home with mountains of gifts too such as Ukrainian hats and flags.”
The couple made their first trip to a refugee centre on the Polish border and stayed in the safe side of the border in March, driving for a total of 36 hours.
But in other journeys they have gone into Ukraine, handing out aid and visiting orphanages in Kyiv. Their last trip took them to within six miles of the front line.
Nathan said: “Our last trip, we had to leave the village we were staying in sharpish and the road we needed to leave on was smoking as it had just been shelled.
“We could hear the shells and gunshots going off which was pretty scary but that’s as close as we have got to action itself.
“Again on our last trip, we stopped at a military checkpoint and in a field nearby was an unexploded mine and rocket which was stuck out of the road, which hadn’t exploded yet. There were blown up tanks, cars abandoned on the road with bullet holes in them so the reality was constantly there.”
The couple book a van for about nine days and are only insured to the Ukraine border, so they leave the van in Poland and load all the stuff into another van which is driven into Ukraine by a friend.
Nathan said: “We were hoping to squeeze a trip in before Christmas but we’ve been lacking in donations which is understandable with the money squeeze and Christmas coming up.
“We are going to carry on doing it until we run out of money.”