Ian Forster, a 51-year-old Sales Director & Newcastle Conservative Association Treasurer, got more than he bargained for after spontaneously deciding to raise funds and gather urgently needed supplies to drive the 1500 miles in his trusty Land Rover Defender to the Refugee centre in Przemysl; on the Polish/Ukrainian border.
During the epic 3,000-mile, one week mission which he set off for on 27/4/22 & travelled through Holland, Germany down to Southeastern Poland, he encountered some significant challenges. Ian was held & searched on the Ukrainian border for over three hours during a late-night mercy mission carrying urgent medical supplies into Ukraine; and was also approached by three U.K. ex-military civilians in Przemysl; who he agreed to drop near the border crossing so they could go & fight in Ukraine, as part of the International Legion.
Ian witnessed some heart-breaking scenes during his time working at the refugee centre, which has significantly touched him. People trafficking is rife, conditions are poor, and it is a human tragedy he witnessed in the raw. After arriving back in the U.K. on Monday 4th April, he is even more determined to keep on fundraising; to raise additional funds to support a vehicle being used to transport fleeing refugees, transporting aid into Ukraine and to also shuttle refugees to the U.K. Visa Processing centre in a nearby town.
Ian teamed up with a Newcastle based charity called Make a Difference (MAD) who were working as part of Operation SafeDrop; which was an initiative ‘Working to provide support & transportation to get women and children safely from the Ukrainian border to their desired destination’. After discussing the appeal with John Lawler at MAD, he committed to raising enough funds to cover his costs to get himself and the urgent supplies out to Poland, so he wasn’t a drain on the charity’s scarce resources. He was subsequently joined on the mission by a fellow Land Rover Defender owner, Tim Cieslik from Lincolnshire. Tim joined Ian’s mission after an appeal he did for donations to the various worldwide Land Rover Defender groups.
After initially setting a target of raising £1,000, which he then increased to £2,500, then £4,500 & he has currently raised £10,560, with more to follow. He’s hustled everyone he knows and featured as the lead news item on BBC Look North. He has constantly updated everyone of his progress on his Facebook page and the various groups he is a member of. With donations being made from as far away as Louisville, Kentucky to Japan from fellow Defender owners, both Tim & Ian have been overwhelmed with people’s generosity.
As Ian said: “As Geordies, we never fail to answer a call for help & I have been overwhelmed with people’s generosity locally with family, friends and complete strangers supplying a significant amount of urgently needed items such as Toothbrushes, toothpaste, woman’s sanitary products, nappies, children’s toys along with new socks and underwear. It is truly humbling, and we were thrilled with our international donations.” After delivering the aid (which went straight over to Lviv), Ian and Tim worked at the Refugee centre in Przemysl, assisting MAD shuttling women and children to their onward destinations and to the U.K. Visa processing centre in Rzeszow; along with medical supply runs and replenishing stocks of products at refugee centres. There was a constant flow of refugees arriving daily on buses from the Ukrainian side and Ian recalls one vivid image of two women and three small children with only the clothes on their backs and a couple of small bags of belonging, in temperatures of -2?, looking dazed, lost and haunted as he waited to cross into Ukraine.
The whole experience within the refugee centre was harrowing. “A sensory overload”; as Ian calls it. The scenes he has witnessed are heart breaking. There are groups of volunteers trying their best & Ian has worked with people from as far away as Colorado & San Francisco. The threat of people trafficking and the pilfering of aid (all packs of items must be broken down into single items to avoid theft on arrival at the refugee centres); only add to the misery the poor Ukrainian refugees face.
However, Ian witnessed help pouring in from all corners of the globe and was heartened that so many people had either donated; or physically heard the call and gone to the border to help.
