Peterborough's Helping Our Ukrainian Friends battle rain and snow to get vital supplies to people in need

Volunteers with Peterborough's Helping Our Ukrainian Friends overcame transport and weather challenges to complete their latest delivery of essential supplies to people living in the war-torn country.

During the week-long round trip, the group had to source emergency repairs to one of their vehicles before facing an eight hours long drive through torrential rain and snow to get to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

But despite the challenges the expedition was a success with the vehicles and £16,000 of donations safely delivered.

The group began the trip with a stop in Bucharest and picked up two second-hand 4x4 vehicles – a VW van and a Nissan X-Trail – which they had bought in advance with their partner charity, Sustain Ukraine.

The money for one of these had been raised by a group of Ukrainian ladies in Peterborough and Stamford through a race night at Burghley Golf Club in January.

Richard Astle, chair of Helping Our Ukrainian Friends (HOUF), said: “Driving through Romania to the border with Ukraine, unfortunately the X-Trail broke down about two-and a-half hours from the border and we had to have emergency repairs, including a new clutch.

"Amazingly we got these done the same day and were able to reassemble at midnight on the Friday back at the border.

"We stopped in the town of Chernivtsi to visit families who fled Kharkiv at the beginning of the war and have been living here since then, spending the first year sleeping on the floor of the school hall.

"HOUF has been providing them with support since summer 2022.

"There then followed an eight hour drive to Kyiv in driving rain and snow, arriving there at 8pm.

“We handed over the vehicles to two separate military units who will use them for medical evacuation from the front line in the Donbas.

He said: “We were also able to meet with two of our other charity partners – Cross Charity and Person to Person.

"Cross provides field kitchens to soldiers and civilians on the front lines, setting up just behind the front and providing hot meals to soldiers as they come off duty.

“Person to Person take humanitarian aid to front line communities, including food, medicines and clothes and are also involved in supporting orphans forced to abandon their orphanage as it came under attack.”

HOUF donated £16,000 of donations to Sustain Ukraine, Cross and Person to Person and to another charity working in the west of Ukraine.

The HOUF drivers were Mr Astle, of Helpston, Dave Ribakovs of Maxey, and Mark Asplin, a director of Peterborough-based Princebuild.