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Donations still helping Ukraine, volunteer says

Jodie HalfordEssex
News imagePhil Billingham Three people - two men and a woman - stand in front of a large sign that says Ukraine in Ukrainan and English on a large blue and yellow background. The sky behind them is blue and the verge is a lush green colour.Phil Billingham
Phil Billingham, his wife Shannon Currie and their friend David Crozier have made a number of trips from the UK to Ukraine to take over supplies and humanitarian aid

A businessman who has delivered vehicles and aid to Ukraine said donations continue to make a difference despite a "lower level" of support in recent years.

Phil Billingham, who lives in Kelvedon, Essex, plans to drive another donated vehicle to Ukraine in October with the charity Drive 2 Save Lives.

In May the charity Hope and Aid Direct spoke to the BBC about a drop in donation levels to Ukraine, which it attributed to the UK's cost-of-living crisis.

Billingham said other international conflicts have also had an impact, adding: "People can feel helpless that what they're doing doesn't help make a difference, but I think it does, and we've seen the good it does."

Russia first launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and currently controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory – largely concentrated in the eastern border regions.

News imagePhil Billingham Three people - two men and a woman - stand holding cans of beer and smiling at the camera. A car with Ukrainian flag livery and a Union Jack on its doors is to one side of them.Phil Billingham
The three friends say they have seen first-hand how important donations and aid are to the people of Ukraine

Billingham said: "I understand that people live busy lives, the world is a complex place, our TVs are full of the news every day of Gaza and Lebanon and Syria and Iran and all the other things that are going on in the world.

"But the war in Ukraine is still going, and there's still things we can be doing. If people are trading in vehicles, then perhaps we can buy them through the charity, and they can feel that they're doing some good."

Billingham has previously worked with Driving Ukraine, a charity founded in 2022 that delivers medical evacuation vehicles, pick-up trucks and humanitarian aid to front lines in Ukraine.

In October he will be travelling to Ukraine his friend Tom Snowdon - alongside Tom's daughter Kate - to deliver a donated vehicle with Drive 2 Save Lives.

"We're looking for a Mitsubishi Shogun or something of that nature," Billingham told the BBC.

"It can be old, it can have paint work only a mother would love. But as long as it's solid and reliable, the Ukrainians can make use of it," he said.

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