KIND-hearted workers at a Stourport light haulage company are to drive two vans on a mercy mission across Europe to deliver vital aid to the people of Ukraine.

Lewis Light Haulage and Storage will transport a huge range of donations given to a local charity in England to the Poland/Ukraine border.

The business’s owner, Noel Lewis, from Worcester and driver Lee Reed, from Kidderminster, will begin their four-day trek on Friday March 11, driving two three-and-a-half ton vehicles full of much-needed supplies. The vans will be packed with everything from food to clothes to medical supplies – all of which have been donated locally.

Mr Lewis said he had become aware a significant amount of donations had been made to a local drop-off point since the war began, and having a light haulage business meant he couldn’t just “stand by and do nothing.”

Kidderminster Shuttle:

He said: “I knew there was a central point where people were making massively generous donations. I was driving one of my vans so I rang my wife and said there must be something we can do to help – something tangible and meaningful that would make a real difference.

“Seeing the pictures on TV every day has broken my heart, so I had to help.”

The journey – which Mr Lewis says could be the first of several – will involve a ferry across the Channel to France, taking in Belgium, Germany and Poland before arriving at a distribution centre on the border with Ukraine. The vans are set to arrive late on Saturday March 12, before beginning their return journey the following day.

The cost of the trip will be around £1,000 per van, so a GoFundMe page has been set up with the aim of raising £5,000 to cover the cost of fuel, ferries and tolls, with all other costs being met by Lewis Light Haulage. People can donate through GoFundMe via 

www.gofundme.com/f/east-bound-and-downhelp-us-to-help-others?fbclid=IwAR1a79VOxp8mtNONMJvCbd7BsnW16Lc6aH2UW7rAVW6ULJzeDhoWVnw0sJI