Inverness Rotary Club member to deliver 4x4 to Ukraine as part of 50-vehicle Jeeps For Peace convoy
Inverness Rotarian Simon Cole-Hamilton is driving a 4×4 to Ukraine as part of a 50-vehicle convoy. Picture: Callum Mackay.
A life-saving vehicle packed with humanitarian aid from the Highlands is joining a 50-vehicle convoy bound for Ukraine.
Inverness Rotary Club member Simon Cole-Hamilton will set off in the 4×4 from Edinburgh today as part of a mission organised by the charity, Jeeps For Peace.
This will be the third such trip he has made to the country which has come under constant bombardment from Russia which launched a full-scale invasion in 2022.
Fellow Rotarians wish Simon Cole-Hamilton good luck as he sets off on his journey to Ukraine. Picture: Callum Mackay.
The club joined forces with other rotary clubs in Inverness to raise funds and Mr Cole-Hamilton sourced the second-hand vehicle.
With the help of the charity, Highlands for Ukraine, it has been loaded with vital supplies including wheelchairs, medical items and blankets donated after the completion of filming of Odyssey in Moray.
Mr Cole-Hamilton will take the ferry from Hull to Rotterdam and the convoy will be joined in Holland by more vehicles.
He will deliver the 4×4 to Kolomyia in south western Ukraine.
“Jeeps For Peace has a warehouse there where all the vehicles go to be checked and distributed to the east of the country,” he said.
Mr Cole-Hamilton is making the journey as Russia has escalated its aerial assaults on Ukraine in recent weeks.
There have also been a series of recent incursions by Russian fighter jets and drones in Estonian, Polish and Romanian airspace.
“The parts we are going to are as safe as anywhere in Ukraine at the moment,” Mr Cole-Hamilton said.
“We have to be aware that missile and drones can target anywhere.
“We will obviously be paying attention to the warnings coming out about any impending attack.”
Referring to his two previous trips, he said the Ukrainian people were grateful for the support from Scotland as well as the rest of UK and Europe.
“What we are doing means an awful lot to the Ukrainians we have met there,” he said.
“There are incredibly grateful for the support of the rescue vehicles we deliver to them.
“Equally, they are grateful that people are taking the trouble to come into their country.
“I think there is a fear they will be forgotten about and therefore it is an extremely encouraging thing to see support coming and for people to visit their country to bring them help.”
The 4×4 will form part of a Jeeps for Peace convoy. Picture: Callum Mackay.
Mr Cole-Hamilton, who commended the endurance and resilience of the Ukrainian people, outlined his own motivation to make the journey.
“I think it needs to be done,” he said.
“It is a totally unfair fight that Ukraine has had imposed on it from an illegal invasion from a country which has got vast military might.
“The Ukrainians are doing incredibly well considering their own limited resources.
“They are the frontline of Europe and we have to give them all the support we can.
“It would be a great mistake to give up on Ukraine.”
The club has a fundraising page at JustGiving.
Since the Russian invasion, Jeeps for Peace has delivered more than 550 Jeeps to Ukraine.
The forthcoming trip will push the figure to 600.
Once in Ukraine, each vehicle will be modified before being sent to the front-line.
There, they will be used to deliver critical supplies of food and medicines, evacuate civilians in danger and retrieve wounded soldiers from the frontline.
They can then be rapidly transported to the vital medical teams.
