French students are bringing two ambulances for the needs of hospitals in eastern Ukraine
MARCH 24, 2015 – On March 23, 2015 students of the University Paris-East-Créteil stopped in Lviv while bringing from Paris to Kyiv two ambulances loaded with medical equipment for the needs of hospitals in eastern Ukraine.
Organizers of the project «UkraineGo» Agathe, Marine, Yuta and Robin, four students of the French University Paris-East-Créteil, started fundraising in social networks, which encouraged everyone concerned to join the initiative. “Later the idea to print stickers with the logo of our project that we sold for € 1 each appeared. Another important factor was the information activity”, – said the students. Volunteers informed their colleagues, students, about the events in Ukraine and the purpose of the action. They managed to collect about 6000 €. In addition, a significant amount of money was donated by the French IT company and Ukrainian church in Paris. The total amount was 14 000 €, so the students managed to buy two ambulances – Renault Traffic (2010) and Volkswagen T5 (2009).
On March 16, 2015, French students left Paris to cover 2000 km – the distance from Paris to Lviv. French students’ initiative was supported by the fellow Lviv University, including representatives of the Student Coordinating Center for ATO who loaded ambulances with medicines. During the official meeting which was held at the International Office of the University, Lviv and Parisian students exchanged the ideas and shared their impressions from the trip. “Another aim of our initiative was to spread the word on the humanitarian situation and needs in Ukraine, as media in Western Europe mainly talk about negotiations on the diplomatic level, therefore not everyone there is aware of the fact that people are being injured and killed every day in Ukraine”, – the French students admitted.
Student Mayor of the city Yevhen Fylypets thanked volunteers for ambitious work that they were able to do, and noted that for Ukraine their help is extremely valuable. Vice-Rector for International Cooperation, Prof. Mariya Zubrytska addressed her appreciation to the French students: “I express my gratitude for this initiative. You made great efforts and you were successful to achieve it. Your support of Ukraine in this difficult time is very important for all of us.”