Fedex, Direct Relief send 76 tons of medical supplies to Ukraine
Over the span of several hours Saturday morning, 76 tons of medical supplies were loaded onto a Fedex Express Boeing 777 in Memphis. The plane is destined for Warsaw, Poland, where the supplies will be distributed to Ukrainian refugees and residents suffering from Russia’s invasion of the Eastern European nation.
“We feel a responsibility to give back,” said Jenny Robertson, vice president of corporate communications at Fedex. “When we have employees in all parts of the world, if it even affects one of them, it affects all of us and we want to do what we can to help them.
“We have 200 employees in Ukraine, we’re focused on supporting them, doing what we can to help them, and then when we heard that there was this need for these medical supplies, and we knew we had a partner who had all of these supplies, we quickly mobilized and said ‘we can get a jet and let’s get it over there to Poland and make sure we get those medical supplies where they need to go.”
Direct Relief, a nonprofit humanitarian organization based out of California, partnered with Fedex for this shipment, with Direct Relief coordinating the donation of medical supplies and Fedex donating the charter flight.
“People in Ukraine right now are really suffering through such a terrifying time and people have been fleeing their homes and people who have chronic conditions are going through a crisis without medication,” said Heather Bennett, vice president of partnerships and philanthropy at Direct Relief. “So we’re delivering medications for diabetes, for asthma, for cancer, so these people don’t go into acute crisis, so they can be healthy while trying to navigate a new life.”
The charter plane was packed from front to back with boxes of supplies, which included an emergency field hospital and substantial quantities of emergency medicines such as Tranexamic Acid to prevent bleeding, inhalers, IV fluids, oxygen concentrators and sutures. Molnupiravir, a COVID-19 treatment, was also on board.
Vitaly Potapenko, a former NBA player from Ukraine and current assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies, attended the loading of the plane with his family. He didn’t speak to the media at the airport Saturday, but In early March, Potapenko spoke to the Dayton Daily News about the situation in Ukraine, saying he still had relatives in Ukraine.
“My parents still have good friends there,” he told the Dayton Daily News. “This really hurts them. They watch the TV reports every day and it definitely affects them mentally.”
The plane will fly first to Cologne, Germany, for a crew change before continuing to Warsaw, where the supplies will be distributed throughout western Ukraine. Direct Relief representatives on the ground will assist with the distribution of goods.
Since Feb. 24, Direct Relief has provided more than 125 tons of medical aid in response to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. All items provided have been at the request of, and approved by, Ukraine’s Ministry of Health.
The donation from Fedex is part of the more than $1.5 million in humanitarian aid Fedex has said it will provide to nongovernment organizations in Europe. Robertson also said Fedex checks in on employees in Ukraine every day and has provided money to Ukrainian employees who have fled to Poland. Fedex had one employee in Ukraine who was injured in the fighting, Robertson said, but that employee is okay now.
“We’re giving them money, we’re giving them support,” Robertson said about their employees in Ukraine and Poland. “We have a hotline that they can call to connect with individuals who speak the local language and help them and we check in with them via text, their managers check. And we gave everyone who crossed the border, we gave them money to help with shelter and food.”
Direct Relief was founded after World War II as a way to send relief parcels to people in need in war-torn Europe.
“Direct Relief was founded 75 years ago from people who fled to Europe after World War II,” Bennett said. “So it sort of comes full circle, for the organization, and it means a lot to us, not only as humanitarians but as people, who really want to help the situation in Ukraine.
Direct Relief and Fedex have been partnering together for the past 20 years.
“We started working with them in the early 2000s, I believe, starting to ship documents for customs clearance and it’s just really blossomed into such a wonderful relationship, where they’re providing shipping, emergency preparedness and response activity and funding,” Bennett said. “When they bring together a charter, it’s really the best.”
In the past, Direct Relief and Fedex have partnered to send goods to places like the Philippines following Typhoon Haiya in 2013 and India when COVID-19 was spiking in the country. This is, according to Bennett, the eighth or ninth charter plane Fedex has provided.
“It’s just really a perfect match,” Bennett said. “With Direct Relief providing the medicines and supplies and Fedex providing the transportation and logistics.”
Gina Butkovich covers Desoto County, storytelling and general news. She can be reached at 901-232-6714 or on Twitter @gigibutko.