Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin in Lviv, Ukraine; the bishop of this Greek catholic cathedral prepares his blessing; Michael Cole-Fontayn with the ambulance 

“Did I mention I went there at the weekend?” The opener for an early week conversation in any City office kitchen? Not when it’s the chair of the CISI Board mentioning almost in passing that he and his wife had been in Ukraine for the weekend. Why? “Delivering an ambulance.” Of course.

Health care systems have struggled across the world since the pandemic began, but none as much as Ukraine’s, with a bloody war raging across much of the country. Enter Alexander Thomas. With a degree in Russian history under his belt, a masters in Russian literature, and an Oxford PhD in contemporary Russian theatre, he was all set to take up a Fellowship in Moscow in April 2022. Then came the illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine. So instead of the peacetime delights of springtime in Moscow, Alexander found himself 600 km due south in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city with some 1.5 million souls before the attacks – 2 million in the broader metropolitan area – and just over the border from Russia.

Kharkiv and Przemysl Project

The Kharkiv and Przemysl Project (KHARPP) is a grassroots initiative that was founded by Alexander Thomas and Ada Wordsworth – who had been a student at the same Oxford college but whom he met in Poland after the war started. “The project grew out of our time on the Polish-Ukrainian border,” Alexander explains, “helping refugees with their immediate needs as they arrived in Poland. We were near the conflict, so we were able to identify first-hand what people really need when they arrive, as well as being ideally placed to help our friends inside Ukraine itself with their needs. As the war has raged on, these needs have become increasingly acute. ”

Now KHARPP operates on two fronts. In Przemysl, Poland at the border, it has a team of Ukrainian and Russian speakers working out of the train station, meeting and helping refugees leaving the country. Where needed, it can provide support with emergency accommodation, onward transport costs, suitcases, and hot meals. It has been on the ground since early March 2022, just after the war started. “This gives us a unique insight into the official Polish response effort, and allows us to fill in any gaps which may emerge,” says Alexander. 

In Kharkiv, the focus of their work has shifted to the reconstruction effort. As of January 2023, it has helped with repairs on over a hundred houses in villages north of Kharkiv, in all of which it was the first aid organisation to reach with the aim of reconstruction. It has also funded the repair of a care home and two medical clinics in the region.

Effective healthcare delivery is key

That’s where CISI chair Michael Cole-Fontayn MCSI, Alexander’s stepfather, comes in. Adequate transport arrangements for the injured and sick are key to effective healthcare delivery. KHARPP needed an ambulance. They bought one from the main UK supplier of second-hand ambulances, based in Birmingham – who knew? – thanks to a donation from the Fieldrose Charitable Trust. They loaded it with much-needed warm clothing, baby care materials, and Starlink satellite internet devices.

“Starlink is one of the wonders of the world”, says Michael. “Or more precisely, off the world.” It has more than 3,500 active satellites above us right now, more than half of all working satellites. A mighty chunk of its current traffic comes from Ukraine. Starlink, which Elon Musk launched as a side-hustle to help fund his planned Mars mission, has become an integral part of the country’s civil and military response to Russia’s invasion, and key to communications for many Ukrainian citizens.

The ambulance was blessed by the bishop of the Greek Catholic Cathedral So, having loaded their ambulance with all these treasures, on the last weekend of January 2023, Michael and his wife Angela set off from Woolwich in London and drove it due east across Europe towards Kharkiv. On day one, Friday, ten hours of driving saw them crossing the English Channel and passing through France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, before a brief night of rest in Dortmund. Then an early start took them across the German border into Poland, and just ten hours after breakfast that second day they were in Krakow.

A well-earned more leisurely start on the Sunday morning took them in two hours to the Ukrainian border (where their insurance cover ran out, the citizens of EC3, home to Lloyd’s of London, being wisely wary of wars). The paperwork, crossing out of the EU, was inevitably tedious, but Michael has high praise for both Polish and Ukrainian officials who understood the value of the mission, bringing a much-needed element of humanitarian aid to the hellish nightmare of life on the frontline of the conflict.

By 5pm on Sunday they were in Lviv. The ambulance was collected early the next morning by a team from the charity in Kharkiv, but not before it was blessed by the bishop of the Greek Catholic Cathedral. With the doors of his cathedral open, prayers, chants, and sprinkles of holy water rained down on the revered ambulance.

Meeting with a Ukrainian MP

Prior to departure back to Poland and onwards to London, Michael and Angela, along with Alexander, managed to squeeze in a breakfast meeting with a Ukrainian MP, who set out the dire need for additional blood donors in Ukraine. During war, they were told, three times more blood is needed than during peace time. Around one quarter of the Ukrainian population has left the country, creating a chronic shortage of blood for the wounded. Prior to the war, Ukraine’s largest blood bank was in Kharkiv, but the Russians deliberately bombed the facility to the ground, which has only exacerbated the problem. One of the solutions is a blood bus, which can collect blood in the west of the country, and transport it directly eastwards to where it is vitally needed. KHARPP has already managed to source a suitable vehicle in the UK and is now looking for sponsors and donors to help them buy it.

To enquire about sponsoring the blood bus, or for more information on KHARPP’s work, please email contact@kharpp.com. To donate to its work please visit kharpp.com/how-to-donate.