PAL-UA was originally created as a volunteer community dedicated to evacuating children with cancer and other seriously ill children. Since then, we have expanded and now offer assistance to patients of all ages, patients with limited mobility, and residents of regions close to active war zone.
DT: It’s very simple actually. I’m motivated by the urge to help people, especially those who cannot help themselves – the sick, the wounded, the young and the elderly. I’m motivated when I learn that somebody survived through our efforts while they could have died if we had not helped them. Can you describe your day?
DT: I wake up, I cook breakfast for my kids. Then I go over our outstanding evacuation requests and work with my teams to match those requests with available resources. This is not an exact science, you know. Most of our resources are provided by volunteers and those volunteers are not my employees. I’m the boss only by job title. My real job is to plead, advocate and negotiate to make evacuations possible. What’s your idea of success in what you do?
DT: We are not after formal recognition or acknowledgement. Success is measured in lives saved. That’s all there is to it actually. While numerous organizations are working on the evacuation front, we are not competitors. We are all partners and I’m happy to work in a team with other charities. Our individual roles may vary from one evacuation to the next, but no contribution is too small.
It all started with the first organised evacuation for a group of children with cancer at the beginning of the full-scale invasion – on 26 February 2022. During the evacuation, it became clear that none of the parents knew what to do next, how to cross the border, where to go for documents, how to get help and shelter in a new country.
At that time, I continued to organise evacuations myself, but the constant lack of information on evacuation abroad and the large number of questions that kept appearing prompted me to create a new information project called Borders of Ukraine. A telegram channel was created that covered information specifically about Ukrainians moving abroad and the help they could receive there. Then, in order to be able to evacuate patients with different diagnoses, it was decided to create a team called ‘Evacuation of the Seriously Ill’, which included medical specialists and volunteers willing to help.’ Thus, a team was formed that continues to help Ukrainians in the medical and humanitarian field to this day.
February 28 – van 12 children with their parents picked up from…page missing…
March 1 – cancer kids from Poltava, found a bus
March 2 – 1 cancer kid sent to Germany 14 cancer kids, found a bus
March 3 – 6 cancer kids with parents, transfer arranged by bus between two cities in Ukraine. An adult cancer patient escorted by family.
Found 100 liters of gasoline for evacuation. Sent to Chernihiv. Lost contact with the driver. Destiny of the fuel unknown.
Today, the situation in Ukraine remains difficult. The war has resulted in a significant number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and left many local residents without the necessary support. People face serious difficulties, not only in accessing medical services, but also in need of in-depth psychosocial support.
© 2024 PAL-UA
