Northampton Catholics raise funds for live-saving medical aid for Ukraine

Catholics in Northampton raised nearly £8,000 to equip an ambulance with desperately needed medical supplies for Ukraine.

On Easter Sunday morning at 6 a.m., two volunteers began to drive the ambulance on a 1,650 mile journey to Ukraine via France, the Netherlands, Germany and Poland.

Four days later, the ambulance was expected to reach Lviv, where it will be handed over to “Ukraine-Mother”, a Kyiv-based organisation that will distribute the aid. The ambulance will then be donated to front-line military paramedics in Sumy.

It contains nearly 950 kg of equipment ranging from defibrillators to packages of humanitarian aid and battery packs. These supplies were funded by donations to Caritas, the charity arm of the Catholic Diocese of Northampton, and from parishioners and schools.

A further £3,500 was raised by the Tove Benefice in Towcester which ministers to five churches in the Anglican Diocese of Peterborough.

Dr Loralie Rodrigues, strategic lead for Caritas Social Action in the Northampton Diocese, said: “We thank everyone who has donated to this cause and prayed for Ukraine as we stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters there. It has been amazing to work with the team at Tove Benefice who have done so much to support communities in Ukraine.”

The delivery follows one of the coldest Ukrainian winters in more than a decade, with temperatures dropping below -20°C.

Many communities are in desperate need of supplies, especially as hospitals and life-saving equipment have been destroyed, said a spokesman for Northampton Diocese.

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