On the Road to Making a Difference
by Pal Sanghera
A Russian, Leo Tolstoy once wrote: –
“If you feel pain, you are alive. If you feel other people’s pain, you are a human being”.
We are in the 5th year of the invasion of Ukraine.
The invasion has caused immense devastation not only to infrastructure but also daily living. Children going to school, people going to work do so aware of nearly constant sound explosions somewhere in the city. The sound of a drone missile sends people scrambling for shelter as civilian infrastructure are becoming increasingly frequent targets. There are children for whom this is the norm. They have known nothing else. I am unable to imagine the emotional and psychological scars with which these children grow up.
As we approach a very harsh Ukrainian winter with electricity only working for a few hours a day, the conditions under which these children and others are surviving will become worse. The soldiers on the front lines face even harsher conditions. They need our help. Ukraine is not just fighting for their own freedom but that of the whole of Europe. They are holding the line. What we can do is limited but we do what we can.
Ambulances filled with aid is one thing that we can do.
The volunteers also, through an orphanage in Lviv, support the children who have been made orphans. I have seen photographs of some of the children so grateful for second-hand toys and Easter eggs – some of which donated by the Warwickshire Freemasons. I have met soldiers from the front line who have expressed heart-felt gratitude for the little that we do.
These are images that are not possible to ignore. We all do what we can. Supporting ambulances for Ukraine is the least that we can do.
Belveder, a local community organisation in the process of registering as a charity, has so far sourced filled and delivered 70 ambulances. By the time that you read this, there wilI have been more. Over Hallowe’en I made my fifth delivery, driving through France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany to just this side of the Ukrainian border in Poland, here Ukrainian soldiers came to collect the vehicles from local volunteers.
The Warwickshire Freemasons have so far donated £10,000 to the cause. In addition, I am a trustee of a charity which has been fund-raising specifically for ambulances and with the generosity of supporters has raised £18,000.
In September, Amrit Kalyan, the Master of Holy Well Lodge no 9437 together with his father and myself drove a ridiculously cheaply bought car across Europe, as part of a large group rally of vehicles. An incredible journey through France, Switzerland and Italy, and back to France finishing in Nice. And then, of course, back home. A round trip totalling a little over 2000 miles.
A target of £5,000 was set. With the generous support and good will of a lot of people the sum raised was £5,402.25. Combined with the others on the rally, the grand total raised for some 20 charities was over £100,000. The event was put together by the Rugby Round Table.
The team covered all their own rally costs, which means every donation went directly towards helping fund the ambulance. Once purchased, the ambulance will be filled with humanitarian aid and delivered to Ukraine, where it will support people affected by this war.
The trip was not entirely without drama — there was a problem with one of the front brakes along the way, but after a quick repair by a local garage the banger was back on the road and able to continue the journey home.
Along the way, they also met a lovely couple in a small village which was liberated by the British in 1918 and is home to two British military cemeteries. They were warmly invited into their home for coffee and biscuits — one of those unexpected moments that makes a journey like this even more memorable.
This is a loud testament to the fact that we all share the same values and are one humanity with concern for our fellow man.
The values of Freemasonry in action.