Run 19 – August 2023

Run 19 got off to a great start! Joining Andy on this trip was renowned Learning Podcaster John Helmer – you can learn more about John here. John & Andy chatted during the journey and the recordings will form one or 2 podcasts in the very near future!
The destination for this run was the Military Hospital in Lviv – we had a lot of aid on board on behalf of the “East Sussex for Ukraine” support group.

Planning the optimum timing for a trip like this is something the team have developed over time! When to arrive at Dover to get in quickly and avoid rush hour in Antwerp being just a couple of considerations! As Andy had a rehearsal to attend in Uckfield, leaving from there at 2230 was very good timing! A couple of power naps later and we were ready to cross the Ukraine border. This was the first time going over at 9.00am and we sailed straight to the front of the queue for a change!

First port of call was the HQ of the local Lviv Military Hospital Support Group where we met наталия арестова and her team.

Our thanks to them for their hospitality! We then took the 2 electric scooter/wheelchair across the road to the hospital itself. Seeing many of the patients there was a reminder of why we do this and in particular, to know the name of one of the recipients. Wounded warrior Alexander Korobchuk suffered severe spinal injuries and now lives with his family in the Rivne area. His life will be a lot easier with the arrival of the electric scooter.

Next stop was to the Ukrainian postal service “Nova Poshta” where we filled 3 pallets with aid for a different location, once again on behalf of Oksana and the East Sussex group. Kathrin, a recent arrival from Kiel kindly guided us there and helped with offloading all the boxes!

We also had some other packages which went to Jimmy in Zaporizhia – this included items from Bob & Dan in Loughborough.

Sadly, we didn’t have room to go to our normal location in Brovary but I was able to send a package to Maryna as well.

Our work being complete, we found somewhere to park in Lviv and enjoyed a few hours looking around the city and drinking coffee before heading back to Dunkirk.

This was a very quick trip and ideal for John – I didn’t want to take him anywhere dangerous! Remember to watch his podcasts – whilst they will mainly be about our respective day job interests, we also covered topics related to our work in Ukraine. He also puts these on YouTube: The Learning Hack Podcast – YouTube.

Work is already underway for Run 20 – this will be a big one with 2 vans going to both Kyiv and Zaporizhia. It will also be the first run where all 3 of the guys will be on the road together! (Guy from Weeze will be joining Mike and Andy for this one).