Noel French, Gerasko Larysa. Ambassador of Ukraine to Ireland, Mick Hughes of the Stockhouse 4X4 group.

4x4s, generators, medical supplies... Trim aid convoy heads for Ukraine

A CONVOY of 14 vehicles left Trim on Monday for a 2,500 mile trip to Ukraine where they will donate the vehicles, medical supplies, generators and other aid to the war torn country.

The convoy includes 12 4x4 vehicles, a large minibus and an ambulance and they are expected to arrive in Lviv, Ukraine on Friday evening.

"There are 22 of us in 14 vehicles and we are bringing 35 generators, all sorts of medical supplies and other aid," says David Duignan of the Stockhouse 4x4 team.

The group has been raising funds, supplies and the vehicles over the past three months and they will deliver them into Ukraine where their charity partners Sunflower Network and Trinity Ukraine will take the vehicles and goods for distribution.

The Trim group will then be driven back to the border and will fly home to Ireland from Krakow.

They are expected to arrive by ferry in Dunkirk this evening (Tuesday) and will continue their journey through Belgium to the Netherlands where they will stay overnight. Tomorrow (Wednesday) they will drive across Germany and on Thursday across Poland, arriving in Ukraine on Friday.

At the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine the Stockhouse team decided they couldn't simply sit back and watch events unfold without doing something to help, especially as stories of terrible horrors broke and refugees were fleeing from the terror.

"At an early stage having investigated the needs on the ground in Ukraine we started to organise teams around Ireland and our own team in Trim to join forces and raise funds to purchase (or seek donated) 4x4 vehicles and/ or ambulances, fill them with medical aid and foodstuffs."

Prior to Monday's departure they had already made six trips delivering 63 vehicles including eight ambulances.

They also set up a UK team that have travelled twice to date with 4x4 vehicles and are currently planning to travel again in March '25 with 14 more vehicles.

Meanwhile, as candidates hit the doorsteps canvassing ahead of the general election on 29th November, independent candidate in Meath West, Noel French will not be knocking on doors this week and instead be travelling as part of the humanitarian aid trip to Ukraine.

He said: “This is an important week in any election campaign and yet I am not out there knocking on doors. Why? Because I am taking humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Sometimes you need to stand up and speak out, and sometimes you need to stand up and take action. Where I can - I will stand up and try to make a difference. So I and my friends are bringing 4X4s, ambulances, generators and supplies to Ukraine. This is the third time I have done this and it has been in the planning for more than six months." He added that he had not forgotten Gaza and ran a fundraiser in March for the children there and this year had met both the Ukrainian Ambassador and the Palestinian ambassador.