Twentieth Delivery - 04 November 2023
Scenes and processes are similar. The usual transport service – again an ambulance car is being transferred to Ukraine at the same time. Our delivery consists of three packages with a total of 60 active heating blankets – these are intended for use at the front to prevent the injured from hypothermia.
Nineteenth Delivery - 05 October 2023
Again we used Katja and Nikolai’s ‚transport service‘, which is free of charge for us.
This time the two arrived in an ambulance car. This was financed by donations from another German aid organization and was then handed over by Katja and Nikolai to a Ukrainian aid organization in Lviv.
This time our aid delivery again consisted of so-called Tac-Med products, which are required for first aid treatment.
Eighteenth Delevery - 05 September 2023
This delivery was picked up directly from me (Jörg) in Radebeul, organized by our partners in Ivano-Frankivsk. This again was a „ride along“ for our relief supplies as part of a „normal“ freight transport that brought industrial goods to Ukraine. The contents of the delivery were the relief supplies from projects 84 .. 87.
Due to the lack of pictures, today I’m showing two packing lists (each for one package) from the customs documents.
Seventeenth Delivery - 18 August 2023
The 17th delivery consisted of just one item: 55 pieces of tourniquets (Project 83). These were sent directly to Kiev to our partners there. They are urgently needed in the combat zone for emergency first aid. This time we used a „ride share“ again. The handover took place in Ottendorf-Okrilla to a Ukrainian shipping company that transported industrial goods to Kiev.
Sixteenth Delivery - 20 June 2023
Katja and Nikolai, traveling with a van from the company ’21dx‘, were again our ‚carriers’ to Lviv. The handover to our partners from Ivano-Frankivsk took place in Lviv.
The most valuable cargo in this relief shipment was, besides the electronic stethoscope, a 1-channel laser system for the volunteer surgical clinic near Ivano-Frankivsk (see also text 12th delivery).
This laser is used to treat wounds and scars for faster healing after surgery.
Fifteenth Delivery - 11 April 2023 & 13 April 2023
This aid delivery was divided for organizational reasons. The defibrillator and 100 tourniquets were sent to Warsaw and picked up by Igor (our partner in Ivano-Frankivsk).
The second part of the delivery (syringes, cannulas, long-term blood pressure analyzer, gel sets for burns) was given to a truck transport, which, organized by our Ukrainian partners, also picked up other goods in Dresden.
Fourteenth Delivery - 20 January 2023
Our relief supplies freight was picked up again by Katja and Nikolai, who are also on their way to Lviv again with a transporter from the company ’21dx‘. Our goods are collected from Lviv by our partners from Ivano-Frankivsk.
Since the procedures have become established, there are now no further details that are worth describing. Therefore, the following is only a list of the relief supplies delivered this time.
Thirteenth Delivery - 13 January 2023
Our processes have worked well. There were five packages this time. I gave this, together with a bilingual delivery list (EN, UA), to a truck belonging to a Ukrainian forwarding agent that was on its way to Kiev anyway with our company’s goods.
The following was in the packages:
– Two PowerStations that are used close to the front to
electronic devices, such as cell phones, radios and others
to recharge electronics
– Flashlights and reflective tapes
– Softshell jackets
– Decompression needles for chest/ lung treatment
– Tourniquets / ligating systems
– Viscostat (blood stopper)
– Ambulance stretcher, doctor’s coat
For the New Year 2023: Thoughts and Reviews
At the end of February last year we were confronted with situations that we had never thought about before. Our long-term Ukrainian business partners (and friends) suddenly found themselves at war and asked us for help. Six days after the start of the war (Wednesday), I suddenly received a request from Nina via Whatsapp: ‚Can you please provide the following? – bulletproof vests, tourniquets, walkie-talkies – we’ll pay for that too.’
After that everything happened very fast. We (colleagues, family members, myself) found each other very quickly to start the necessary actions. A collective email to colleagues asking for support/donations went out on Wednesday evening.
A donation account was set up on Thursday. At the same time, a lot of research was carried out as to where to get what. Orders have been triggered. In the meantime, we had concrete lists of aid supplies that were most urgently needed from our Ukrainian partners. Packages with goods arrived at my home address from Friday. We were able to procure some directly in the Dresden region. Aid supplies were still arriving by Sunday noon. Then everything was packed, customs lists were drawn up, translated into Ukrainian and around 3 p.m. I started bringing the first aid delivery worth several thousand euros to Poland – there it was handed over to a confidante of our Ukrainian partners.
The weeks that followed were extremely intense for us. Speed was of the essence because of fears that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would involve rapid territorial gains. We only interrupted our activities to eat and sleep.
***
Today, in January 2023, we are still active. Since May 2022, our activities have been running under the name of our non-profit, registered association (Direkthilfe-Ukraine-e.V.). Reasons for founding the association are reputation (official status and recognition) and the possibility of issuing donation receipts.
Our work is directly dependent on the availability of fundraisers and donations in kind. So far we’ve still managed to collect donations to some extent. This is becoming more and more difficult as the sensitivity to this topic is fading. Since we only keep all of this alive alongside a job, family, etc. in the ‚fourth job‘ , there are simply time limits for raising donations.
At this point, on behalf of our association, I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who didn’t just look the other way, but supported us over the past year. It is only through your help that we were able to provide pinpoint help to those who urgently needed help in their emergency situations on the ground in Ukraine.
Together with you, we have managed to turn donations of around 74,000 Euros into relief supplies and send them to Ukraine. And together with you, we were able to send donations in kind of around 18,000 Euros.
This is a great result, which we are very happy about – especially in view of the fact that all this is only being done by two handfuls of active members of our association.
In our actions we have tried to give you some account of what has become of your donations through our blog posts. In part, we were able to prove this specifically with photos.
Even if this documentation is only rudimentary, I would like to reassure you at this point that every cent donated was actually used to procure relief supplies. We continue to bear administrative costs ourselves through private donations.
Thank you for your trust and support.
And we wish you, as well as the brave Ukrainian people fighting for their existence, a healthy New Year, combined with the hope that the war will end soon.
Jörg Tretner – on behalf of all association members and further active supporters.
Radebeul, end of January 2023
Twelfth delivery - 02 December 2022
Due to the massive destruction of the infrastructure by Putin’s troops, the situation of the energy supply is getting worse and worse. Emergency power generators are now increasingly in demand from our Ukrainian partners. The larger unit in today’s delivery (12/02/2022) will go to a surgical clinic near Ivano-Frankivsk, where war wounded are treated by volunteers (doctors, nurses, technical staff). The generator we supplied now ensures that the electrical operating infrastructure does not suddenly fail, especially during surgeries.
The second emergency power generator goes to the regional children’s hospital Ivano-Frankivsk.
Our relief cargo was picked up by Katja (medical student) and Nikolai (industrial designer), who have just left (12:10pm) for Lviv in a van of the company ’21dx‘. (’21dx‘ has been providing vans for free transportation of relief supplies since the beginning of the war, – also covers the costs of accommodation and food for the van crew).
The third item of our today’s delivery are 15 rescue strechers for use at the front.
Eleventh delivery - 22 November 2022
The 11th delivery went to Kiev. In the packages this time were rainy weather ponchos, thermal underwear, binoculars, rangefinder and two power stations with integrated converter for 230VAC.
Tenth delivery - 17 November 2022
On November 17, 2022, we sent chest seals (emergency patches for penetrated lungs), compresses, vein tie systems, surgical gowns and a large batch of gel bandage sets for burns to Ivano-Frankivsk. Furthermore, a medical contrast medium, which was urgently requested for an operation so that this operation can be carried out in Kyiv.
X-ray protective clothing for the Main Military Hospital in Kyiv was still in high demand. This protective clothing is used during surgeries where x-rays are used to look for splinters in the body.
The X-ray protective clothing was obtained from a hospital in Germany as a donation in kind. It was no longer in use there but fully functional. At this point many thanks to the chief medical officer of the department concerned.
Ninth delivery - 23 September 2022
The 9th relief goods delivery from 23th September 2022 consisted of only one article. This article is an ultrasound diagnostic device that we received as a private donation from a doctor in Hessen. At this point, thank you again.
Following an email from H.Neumann from 17th of October 2022, which explais more details:
Hello everyone,
this evening Roman sent us the following by phone regarding the whereabouts of the medical ultrasound device:
„The medical ultrasound device is in use in a hospital immediately behind the front line in the city of „Slavjansk“, see below (between the towns of „Lyman“ and „Kramatorsk“ in eastern Ukraine, which have become known in the news through various combat operations).
There it provides invaluable services in the initial diagnosis of shrapnel injuries.
The medical ultrasound device guarantees reliable and thus life-saving follow-up treatment for the injured, which would not have been possible without this device.”
Roman has the promise that a written thank you to our Direkthilfe Ukraine e.V. with a photo will be handed in later from Slavjansk.
Roman himself thanked all our team members and supporters by phone.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen / Best regards / З найкращими побажаннями
Holger Neumann
Eighth delivery - 24 August 2022
Hello,
The 8th aid delivery was handed over on the company premises of SICK Engineering in Ottendorf-Okrilla on August 24, 2022. Again we used a ride. A truck that picked up gas meters for Kyiv was just waiting for our donation cargo. Just two hours earlier, I had found out that the handover had actually taken place earlier.
There is no image material from this action – instead I am attaching a few images of the support materials that we have delivered that we have not yet shown.
Seventh delivery - 18 August 2022
Hello,
the 7th shipment left on August 18th. The relief supplies were handed over at the motorway service area on the Spreewald Autobahn Triangle A13/A15. You can also see the time of the handover from the photos from the navigation system ☺.
A Ukrainian truck, commissioned by our partners in Ivano-Frankivsk, came from Denmark to continue via Poland to Ivano-Frankivsk.
The pictures – not pretty – just authentic. Unfortunately I didn’t take a proper picture of the whole package freight. So what! There were 13 packages this time.
Perhaps more meaningful the parts list of package no. 4 for customs clearance in English and Ukrainian.
Fifth and sixth delivery - 06 May 2022 & 16 June 2022
Hello,
the last two deliveries were not as extensive as the previous ones. This was mainly due to the tight finances on our part.
The fifth delivery went on May 6th from Radebeul directly to Kyiv to our business partner Infra-Spektr. The inquiries from there are always influenced by the partly close front lines. In addition to dressing materials and medication, chest seal patches (medical adhesive pads for acute treatment of lung punctures) and tourniquets (blood vessel tying sets for the immediate treatment of injuries, especially to the arms and legs) are in demand. Procuring these two items in particular is not easy – the European market is almost empty.
The sixth delivery was picked up on June 16th. This time we were again able to send chest seal patches and tourniquets. This delivery also included ventilation sets for small children (see the relation of the mask size to my hand in the picture), blood pressure monitors, catheters, special noise-reduced headphones (for use in armored vehicles, for example). And not to forget the many special bandages for knees, ankles and backs. Maya procured this as an extensive donation in kind from a medical supply store in Bad Krozingen. Many thanks to Maya.
The sixth delivery also went directly to Kyiv. The transport was organized by Evgen (employee of Infra-Spektr). Roman, who drove up with a fully packed Benz, was the collector. There was no more room for the two boxes we packed. At first I couldn’t take his suggestion to clear out the boxes and distribute the relief supplies individually in the car, where there was still space – impossible! After all, everything is meticulously recorded in delivery lists for customs in packages. First I had to call Evgen in Kyiv quickly, then the approval was granted. You can see the result in the pictures.
Despite the tense financial situation, we were still able to get such important things as gas masks and suitable special filters. This is against the background that chemical warfare agents such as the nerve gas Sarin could be used. Two other high-priced items were an emergency power generator and radio equipment.
Fourth delivery - 30 April 2022
Hello,
the fourth delivery was unusual for a number of reasons.
First: Sandra Rieger (assistant works council / representative for the severely disabled works council SICK AG Waldkirch) has succeeded in procuring an ultrasound diagnostic device that is no longer required from the Emmendingen District Hospital/ Dr.Stefan Carl. Of course, something like this was not on the list of requested relief goods, – but it caused great joy among our partners. This device is now offered to hospitals in Ivano-Frankivsk, Charkiv and Kyiv. So – many thanks to the District Hospital Emmendingen and to Sandra . And I would like to say a special thank you to our SICK AG colleagues in the „Packing Projects & Systems“ team around Jens Sedler & Stefan Emler in Reute. The artistic packaging is reminiscent of the Christo wrapping of the Reichstag in Berlin –> that was really good teamwork!!
Second: Mrs. Katrin Weigel (company doctor in Waldkirch / SICK AG) had offered us a larger batch of medical disinfectants that should have been disposed of due to the approaching expiry date. When we asked in Ukraine, we received the answer that there was great interest in and demand for these things. So there was a pallet with a large box with the inscription ‚400 kg‘ in my yard. The content: approx. 150 individual packages with disinfectant solutions. At this point again: Thanks to the colleagues of the „Packing Projects & Systems“ team in Reute. And of course thank you very much, Dr. Weigel for immediately thinking of our relief effort in this case.
Third: This time, the relief supplies were transported by a German company (21Dx.GmbH), which works in the field of Covid diagnostics. This company has purchased three vans especially for delivering aid to Ukraine and offers its transport services free of charge to ‚anyone‘ who wants to deliver important aid to Ukraine. 21Dx.GmbH provides transporters including drivers and takes over all costs incurred for the transport – that’s just great! Many thanks to you!
The time of day can be guessed from the pictures. The van arrived at around 11:50 p.m. After loading and a short chat with the ‚crew‘ (two medical students, Katja and Pavlo) over coke and juice, the journey continued at around 1 a.m. on the A4 (Autobahn) through Poland to the Ukrainian border.
Roman, Project Manager of Gasanlitychni Systemy (Ivano-Frankivsk), then called me on Saturday afternoon and confirmed the arrival of the relief supplies. He also expresses his sincere thanks for our support – and I must pass this thanks on to everyone who, in whatever form, has contributed to our ability to provide this aid.
And at this point, on behalf of our team, I would like to express my thanks again: Thank you very much to all supporters inside and outside of SICK AG.
Third delivery - 31 March 2022
Hello,
Before you read this text here, a note:
Please go to the ‚Partners Blog‘ page. This page is also updated and shows how immediately the relief supplies that we provide arrive exactly where they are most urgently needed.
The third delivery took place on March 31, 2022. This time there were so many packages (especially bandages) that our partner company organized the transport itself and sent a van from Ivano-Frankivsk to pick it up. Vadim arrived around 8 p.m. on Wednesday evening, stayed overnight and then drove back to Ivano-Frankivsk on Thursday morning, when finally all delivery lists were complete, translated into Ukrainian and the packages were ready for dispatch.
Our funds are now exhausted – what’s more, we are in the red figures at approx. 3500 € – we have procured further requested relief supplies with private funds (as always).
But the war goes on, and so do the requests for relief supplies – now almost exclusively for medical items.
Of course we want to continue to support them. Next, a fundraiser outside of SICK is planned. That means we write to all acquaintances, business partners and friends. We ask them for their support and to spread our request to their friends, acquaintances, etc.. Finally today we cannot estimate how long we will be able to keep our relief campaign alive with further actions.
Parallel to our activities, we are in the process of founding a non-profit association ‚Direkthilfe Ukraine e.V.‘ (‘Direct help e.V.’)
The primary goals of founding this association are to be able to issue a donation receipt to further donators and to give our activities an official character.
Second delivery - 13 March 2022
This time we were done with packing, writing delivery lists, printing out, sticking on addresses and loading the car ‚already‘ on Saturday – exactly at midnight. Marina (our Ukr. guest (with two children)) also actively supported us. After that we asked for a bottle of Pinot Gris to brighten up the evening and chatted until 2 am.
This time I was asked if I could go to Wrocław too? Yes, of course. Pavlo couldn’t get to the border this time. Pavlo is the ‚ominous‘ person I previously called ‚confidant‘, who then takes the packages to the Polish/Ukr. border forwarded. Pavlo is no longer the person with the 007 touch, but a software developer living with his family north of Wrocław who grew up in Ivano-Frankivsk (UKR) – so here is the connection to our business partner GAZOANALITYCHNI SYSTEMY Ltd – SICK, based in same city.
On the way back home we took Pavlo’s sister-in-law + 13-year-old son to Dresden. Got tickets at the main station and took them to the train.
Well – it goes on. Monday morning the next packages were delivered – now only medical items. The ‚wish lists‘ (precisely specified medical articles) from Ivano-Frankivsk have not yet been completely processed.
And by the way: This morning the attempt to officially register our ukrain guests failed – first make an appointment with the office, beforehand corona test etc., only then introduce them. – Learned something new: Not only DB (Deutsche Bahn) and DVB (Dresdner Verkehrs-Betriebe) transport free of charge, Telecom and Vodafon also provide UKR citizens with SIM cards free of charge.
First delivery - 06 March 2022
(The following text is a partial copy from an email to the colleagues 7.3.2022)
Hallo to all of YOU,
the last days were extremely intensive. We’ve really achieved something. Thank you to everyone who have contributed in which way ever.
Many thanks also to everyone who offered in the form of energy we could not accept – please do not be disappointed – it would often have meant more coordination and time.
At Obi we made a bulk purchase – contacted the store manager and got a 30% discount 😊.
Even yesterday we were able to deliver goods of a considerable value, which were urgently requested by our Ukrainian partners.
Me with the car – just behind the Polish border – handover to a Polish ‚confidant‘ who transports the goods to the eastern border with Ukraine, where they hand them over to a forwarding agency, who then delivers the items across the border to our Ukrainian partners.
That was a first partial delivery – many requested things have not yet been delivered.
Transparency: I am deliberately not mentioning any numbers here in the large mailing list. Just this much: Anka Reichert is our treasurer and is informed about all numbers.
Medicine: For the procurement of the medical goods we have a great working relationship with the company medical team in Waki. The €10,000 provided by SICK will only be used for medicines, med. Instruments … used, which are procured from the company medical team. Hats off to their commitment!!
Finally, I’m just cheeky, asking those who still want to donate and have just forgotten to donate. – The donation accoutn you’ll find at ‚Donations / Spenden‘
Just think about how well we are doing and the women with children who have to say goodbye to their husbands and don’t know if they will ever see each other again.
