Moray aid mission drivers to Ukraine discover they live just a mile apart
Two men on a mercy mission to Ukraine discovered during the journey that they live just a mile away from each other in Moray.
Campbell Roy and Eddie Harwood, who did not know each other beforehand, had both independently volunteered their services to Pickups for Peace, a Forfar-based charity that helps with the purchase and handover of four-wheel drive vehicles.
During the 1300-mile drive across Europe loaded with supplies and equipment, Campbell and Roy found out that they lived at opposite ends of Loch Na Bo near Lhanbryde.
The pair met up again this week in Moray to speak about their experiences in Ukraine and about the continuing humanitarian work being done by Pickups for Peace.
Campbell, who for many years was involved with motor sports, said: “The fact that people from abroad are willing to support them in their struggle means a lot to the Ukrainians.
“Whether you speak to civilians or to battled-hardened military veterans, they all say the same thing, that the vehicles and equipment are both useful, appreciated and good for morale.
“It shows that the world hasn’t forgotten about their struggle and they are not standing alone against Putin’s invasion.”
Eddie, who’s well-known in orienteering circles, wears a small badge on his lapel with an entwined British and Ukrainian flag.
These badges were handed to them by a group of Ukrainian women as the convoy of 32 vehicles crossed into the country.
He said: “Apparently these women, whenever they hear that another convoy is arriving from abroad, come to the border in order to meet it.”
Campbell added: “Whether they had lost loved ones in the conflict or not, we don’t know, but they were cheering and clapping.”
From the border the convoy made its way to the city of Lviv where they handed over the vehicles as well as the equipment they’d been asked to bring.
In Campbell’s case, this included medical gowns, bandages, reflective foil blankets and winter clothing.
Sadly, it also included a large number of body bags. These had been sourced from a hospital in Newcastle. Originally purchased by the NHS at the height of the pandemic, they were never needed in UK.
Eddie, meanwhile, delivered a consignment of riot shields obtained from the Metropolitan Police, which will be repurposed for use in the frontline trenches to provide protection from enemy fire.
The pair, along with the rest of the convoy’s members, stayed for two nights in Lviv.
During the course of the second they were twice woken by sirens warning of incoming Russian missiles, and had to seek shelter in the cellar of their hotel which has been turned into an air raid shelter.
A woman was killed by shrapnel that night after a missile was shot down above the city, but the inhabitants of Lviv have, by now, become very used to such attacks.
Eddie said: “Despite the war the people seem determined to try to carry on as normally as possible. I think it’s their way of sticking up two fingers to Putin.”
Pickups for Peace was created in the days after the Russian invasion in February 2022 by a group of farmers from Angus who has business dealings with Ukraine.
Since then it has organised the delivery of 525 four-wheel drive vehicles, which are highly valued due to their durability and versatility.
The charity is always looking for more help. Find out more at pickupsforpeace.co.uk
