You're reading: Volunteer helps grieving families who lost their fathers in Russia’s war

Ivan Bogdan drives 70,000 kilometers per year as a part of his daily routine. However, his job description hardly reveals that.

Bogdan, a 41-year-old commercial director living in Kyiv, spends most of his weekends as a volunteer delivering aid to the Ukrainian army in the east and helping families of fallen soldiers of the 95th Airmobile Brigade.

His first trip to eastern Ukraine was in early summer 2014, when Bogdan went to the key strategic Donetsk Oblast city of Debaltseve to deliver night goggles for Ukrainian servicemen.

“It was horrible. That was not the Donbas I used to know,” Bogdan says as he recalls seeing ruined buildings of the shattered city.

Since then, he traveled all over the frontline to deliver aid directly to the soldiers while keeping his regular job. Bogdan’s family approves his activities.

Bogdan made his work specifically targeted. He delivers aid to the 95th Airmobile Brigade and the 72nd Mechanized Brigade.

“The soldiers of the 95th Brigade had the biggest role in all the successful battles we had,” he says, explaining his choice.

The servicemen of the elite 95th Airmobile Brigade based in Zhytomyr have a reputation as Ukraine’s best troops, always serving on the front lines since the beginning of the Russia-instigated war in Donbas in 2014.

They were fighting in Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Pisky and Donetsk airport. Both in the times of fighting and during the fragile cease-fire Bogdan has been delivering them gear, Gore-Tex boots, uniforms and food.

95th brigade soldiers

Soldiers of the 95th Airmobile Brigade received aid from Bogdan in the village of Ocheretyne, Donetsk Oblast. Photo Oleksandr Ratushniak

It wasn’t easy to start, as Bogdan organized his trips to the frontline himself. He’s been coordinating his activities with the units’ commanders, thus getting first-hand information about their needs.

“That’s why I don’t believe all those ‘treason’ calls on social networks, when some people say that Ukrainian soldiers don’t have food or uniform,” Bogdan says, adding that it was true only in the beginning of the war in the east. “If soldiers don’t have everything they need, they should talk to commanders, not volunteers.”

Bogdan is certain it would be impossible to keep working without the help of Ukrainian activists from all over the world, including the U. S., Hong Kong, Germany and Scotland. He also got in touch with Euromaidan London, a community group that has sent more than six tons of aid – including t-shirts, boots and medical supplies – to support Ukrainians.

“It would be totally wrong to claim that a volunteer is the one doing all the work, it’s rather a person that controls the network,” Bogdan says.

Avdiivka, civilians

Ivan Bogdan delivers aid to civilians in a city of Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast. Photo Oleksandr Ratushniak

Inga Chepynets, a Ukrainian living in Chicago, is one of those who have been helping Ukrainian army through Bogdan. Chepynets says he’s the one she can trust.

“Even though I didn’t know him personally, we’ve been in touch for quite a while and he’s an incredible person, mostly because he’s not indifferent,” Chepynets told Kyiv Post.

In the end of 2015, Bogdan decided to focus his activities on a narrow subject. People’s donations have been shrinking immensely, he said, and daily reports on injured or dead don’t encourage people to donate money – either on civilians or army.

Avdiivka, civilians

Ivan Bogdan (R) helps to evacuate civilians from a city of Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast. Photo Oleksandr Ratushniak

That’s how he came up with the idea of helping families of the killed soldiers of the 95th Brigade. He requested information about the families who lost their husbands or fathers and ended up with 21 families on the list. There were around 35 children in total.

Bogdan got in touch and visited every single family.

“It’s not easy. But I’m not the one they can cry together with – they have their own families for that. I rather go there to help, make sure they get financial aid from the government,” he explains.

Besides the financial aid that he delivers together with clothes and toys, Bogdan is looking for patrons for the children to organize sports activities for them or engage them in art classes.

One of the patrons that Bogdan found has paid to get the families of the fallen soldiers from Zhytomyr free swimming pool access.

So far, at least 90 people volunteered to help the families, including journalists, activists, and people from abroad. Individuals were much more helpful than businesses, according to Bogdan.

Bogdan’s hobby – photography – comes handy in his mission. Bogdan decided to advance his photography skills when EuroMaidan Revolution kicked off in November 2013. He used to photograph the protests from its very early days and after its end he continued taking photos in the war zone. Now, he’s taking pictures of the families of the fallen soldiers and puts them on his website.

“When you see pictures of these families you understand they are not abstract,” Bogdan says.

Now, at least four families are still waiting to get their assigned patrons. Bogdan is hoping he’d be able to find the right people.

“You always need to think about those who left. Of course, you can’t replace their fathers but you can do a better job than just feel sorry for them,” he says.

If you want to become a patron for the family or help soldiers, contact Ivan Bogdan via his website www.ivbogdan.com

Privat Bank card number – 5168742347720280

Bogdan Ivan Ivanovych

PayPal [email protected]

Fill in Bogdan’s name in the payment purpose with a note “I’m sending money to family or friends.”

Kyiv Post staff writer Olena Goncharova can be reached at [email protected].