Before leaving the West Shore for Ukraine for their fourth humanitarian aid trip, Bruce Brown and Bob Beckett were hopeful they might witness history during their time in the war torn country: the end of the war with Russia.
But when U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance publicly clashed with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office on Feb. 28, the pair adjusted their expectations. Instead, they chose to focus on the mission at hand: delivering much-needed aid to five western Ukrainian municipalities.
With money raised by communities across Greater Victoria and beyond, Langford group Vancouver Island Supports Ukraine (VISU) was able to support a number of projects, including the provision of a school bus for a small rural community, used laptops for hospitals and municipalities, diesel generators for schools and bomb shelters and medical supplies for two hospitals.
“This is not just humanitarian work now,” says Beckett, VISU team leader and former Langford fire chief. “These are close friendships that we've developed.”
Surprisingly, when the Vancouver Island Supports Ukraine (VISU) group arrived in Ukraine early March, they found, unlike the rest of the world, not everyone was talking about Trump.
“Occasionally someone would ask us about it … they were clearly disappointed, disheartened, angry," said retired RCMP staff sergeant Brown. "But they're still busy fighting for their lives, so they're not sort of super focused on it.”
“The people are extremely weary,” adds Beckett.
The country’s weariness truly hit home for the team when paying their respects to fallen soldiers.
During one visit to a cemetery in Kivertsi, they met a Ukrainian woman who visits the grave of her son – her only child – every day to talk to him. With the help of their interpreter, Beckett and Brown asked the woman if they could lay flowers on her son’s grave to honour him.
“There wasn't a dry eye in the place,” said Brown. “We sat and I put an arm around her – while we can't really talk, it's that sort of language that she understood, that we felt bad … that was quite an emotional experience.”
“It was really tough,” adds Beckett. “It was extremely emotional for everybody, including the mayor and council members that were with us.”
The increase in the number of graves and tributes to fallen soldiers since their last visit to Ukraine in 2023 was another grim reminder of the impact of war.
“All the mayors talked about how they're running out of space in their cenotaph squares for tributes,” said Beckett. "[Emotionally] this trip kicked the shit out of me."
The group’s time in Ukraine was put to good use by the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Children’s Hospital, who invited them to join a meeting with the city’s governor and health minister.
It was a meeting to discuss funding for the hospital’s breast milk bank for premature babies. While VISU had helped fund the purchase of equipment, they lacked funds to renovate space in their building for the service.
“About an hour after the meeting, there was a press release that the governor had met with a delegation from Canada and that they were authorizing the funds to go ahead with the renovations,” said Beckett.
“So when people ask why we don’t just send money instead of making the journey there … it does make a big difference to be there actually face-to-face,” said Brown.
As the war in Ukraine continues, so does VISU's work, as the trip uncovered new projects in need of support.
The Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Children’s Hospital needs help to raise funds to build a new facility to support youngsters impacted by the war, while an existing mental health facility for children is in need of new recreational equipment for their patients.
“We said everywhere we went that we will continue to support them in whatever way we can, we will stand with them,” said Beckett.
“They need it more now than ever because of what's happening in the States … I think the trip cemented our belief that we can't abandon them, they've been abandoned once already,” Brown adds.
To find out more about the work of Vancouver Island Supports Ukraine and to donate, visit the website: https://vancouverislandsupportsukraine.ca.
