Group driving aid and pupils' letters to Ukraine

Simon Reevell said the delivery was possible due to the generosity of the people of Hull and East Riding

A volunteer has raised £50,000 to deliver eight ambulances and medical equipment to Ukraine.

Simon Reevell and a group from East Yorkshire will drive the ambulances from Hull to Lviv, in western Ukraine, on Saturday.

The group will also deliver letters from East Riding primary school pupils to a school in the city, which was hit by missiles over the Christmas period.

Children from Beswick and Watton School wrote to children in Lviv to tell them they were thinking of them and hoped that they would stay safe.

Simon Reevell picked up letters from primary school children on Friday

Mr Reevell, of Help2Ukraine (East Riding), also delivered four ambulances and medical aid to the country in December 2023. He heard about the school in Lviv from a friend that he made on the trip.

The school has now been repaired and reopened.

Mr Reevell said: “It just made me think… when we go back, it'd be really nice to show those children that the children in this country want them to stay safe.”

Liz Harros, the head teacher at Beswick and Watton School, said she was “so proud" of the children and their response "to what is a really difficult issue going on in Ukraine".

"To get our children to understand that a little bit better and to connect with children in another country is just wonderful,” she added.

Mr Reevell set up a GoFundMe page to raise money to provide the ambulances and equipment. He has sourced eight former NHS ambulances and purchased 2.5 tonnes of medical aid.

He said that that people had been "incredibly generous and it's because of that they've allowed us to do this".

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