(WWJ) – Metro Detroiters are doing their part to help the people of Ukraine in the midst of the Russian invasion.
Two in particular are heading over to Ukraine themselves to put boots on the ground and crucial supplies in the hands of those who need them.
Gordon Farhat of Macomb County is heading to the war-torn country with about 500 lbs. of medical supplies, while Anthony Pate, from St. Clair Shores, is gearing up to head back to Ukraine for a second time.
Pate just got back from spending a week in Ukraine on a humanitarian mission to deliver bulletproof vests, kevlar helmets, hospital supplies and more. While he doesn’t speak Ukrainian, he has strong ties to the country. His wife is from Ukraine, and he’s got friends and families in the country.
He says he made some more, important connections during his first visit, as he met with a number of hospitals and developed direct supply chains.
Pate tells WWJ he has had daily communication with the head of each of those hospitals to see what their needs are and he intends to “fulfill those needs to the best of our abilities.”
Pate, the owner of a restoration business in Metro Detroit, has a 40,000-square-foot warehouse that’s quickly filling up with donations from those in the area who want to help.
He's very active on social media and is currently asking for help sorting through medical supplies. Pate plans to head back to Ukraine within about a week.
Pate says he was close to a location in Ukraine that suffered heavy bombing, only about a day before it was attacked.
“But I’m not concerned about that,” he told WWJ. His mission is simply to do all he can to help those in need.
That’s the exact same mission Farhat embarked on, on Monday afternoon.
The 58-year-old retiree from Roseville has spent much of his life traveling the world and helping people in need. In fact, he was making plans to visit Guatemala when the war in Ukraine broke out and he knew he had to help.
Farhat is currently traveling to Warsaw, Poland, via Detroit and New York City. Once he’s there, he plans to meet with the cousin of someone he met in Hamtramck. The man owns a pharmacy in Warsaw and he will provide him with pain medication and anesthesia.
“They’re doing operations without it in the capital,” Farhat said of doctors at hospitals in Kyiv.
He’ll also be delivering bagels, water, band-aids, syringes, rubbing alcohol, and even stuffed animals for the kids, Farhat said.
“If that was me over there, I would pray to God that someone would want to help us,” he said.
“These people, they love their country so much, and we’re not doing enough to help them. I understand – I don’t want World War III – but you can’t just sit by and see hundreds of thousands of people being killed, just because of where they live.”
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