They are going to Przemyśl, in Poland, a few kilometers from the Ukrainian border. There are three of them in a nine-man van, Riccardo, Martino and Matteo, they have been driving for two days to go to Novara to help those at war. As they say “what we do can anyone do”, and they have done it.
«For days I had been trying to contact a customer (who has become a friend) who is in Ukraine – says Riccardo – he has a biscuit factory in a city south of Kiev but I couldn’t hear him. Then on Saturday, finally, he answered me. In his city they are preparing for war. She told me what they need: medical devices, medicines, what it takes to set up a field hospital, flashlights, batteries, power generators, all that can serve in an emergency situation to the men who have remained to defend the city“.
The trunk of the van before departure.
«I thought“ something has to be done about this tour ”. We immediately started a tam tam, through friends, in our neighborhood of Novara, through our community of Bocconians who entered the university in 1989, with whom we founded theBB Leva89 Aps Association. With the association we raised more than 3,000 euros with which we bought medicines and medical devices. The Rizzottaglia district in Novara was activated and filled us with sleeping bags, power banks and many objects of necessity; the motor club of Novara lent us a van; the Salesians of Novara also participated. Then a friend of my wife said “I’m coming too.” In short, we are now 5 friends with two vans. Talking about the project we got in touch with some Ukrainian families from Novara and we understood that it would be important, by going there, to be able to bring This is why there are now three of us on a minibus for nine people: Father Juri of the Orthodox Church of Novara put us in contact with a Ukrainian family from Verbania whose sister with other family members (4 women and 4 girls) are running away from war. They crossed the border 100 kilometers north of where we are going. In thirty kilometers we are in Przemyśl, we leave the material in our contact, and then we proceed and we go to take the women and children to take them home with us. “
The donation collection warehouse
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But how do you decide to leave? Out of necessity, because you feel it. «I immediately felt a great energy around our project, clean, true. We came out of an apathy in which we did not want to be. I think that in general there is an awareness of wanting to decide which side to take and we have to do it by acting, not just talking or discussing geopolitics on social media.. There is one thing that I have noticed that annoys me these days, when they say we are heroes: we are not “says Riccardo, while Matteo he is in the van behind, submerged in sleeping bags and blankets (and there is also an Italian flag). At the wheel there is Martino“This is something anyone can do,” he says. «Just decide the day and leave, just decide that there is a need and leave. Then we are together, we talk, we laugh, and this helps to exorcise the anguish we have inside as we get closer to the border. We have already met some refugee families, seeing them out of their context, alone traveling, seeing the trunk with their clothes packed, the dog bowl … this sense of precariousness that they communicate to you, for people like us, who are all fathers, causes a painful sensation ».
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In the lobby of a small hotel in Slovakia some kind of comfort for refugee families.
Last night Riccardo, Matteo and Martino stopped during the trip in a hotel in Slovakia that is receiving Ukrainian families in transit and set up a desk with toys, biscuits, diapers. People, however, do not want to talk, they are here, but they are on the run. Now, as we write, the two traveling vans have arrived in Przemyśl, have delivered the material – they just sent us a whats app – and are heading north to pick up the women and children.
There are many such stories, there are many vans traveling from Italy or leaving, loaded with goods, medicines, people, hopes, solidarity. “From this experience I learned that it is enough to leave, then on the journey things are built, the network works, we have had help and support from thousands of people – Riccardo says – Nobody told us we were doing a madness. I just haven’t told my mother yet. She’s 87, I’ll tell her when I get back. ‘
Source: Vanity Fair
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