‘TURNING generosity and courage into life-saving action’ – that is the driving force behind a Yelvertoft woman’s plan to go on an extraordinary mission to Ukraine.
Next month, Jayne Wheat will drive a 4×4 pickup truck 1,300 miles across seven countries over four days directly into war-torn Ukraine, where the vehicle will go on to save lives within days of arrival.
She will join a convoy of volunteers to deliver evacuation vehicles to the Ukrainian frontlines, as part of charity Driving Ukraine’s initiative to fill Lviv town square with medevac vehicles and love on St Valentine’s Day.
On arrival in Lviv, the 4×4 will be handed to the veteran-run Driving Ukraine workshop, where it will be hardened for frontline use and taken deeper into the country by medics for evacuation of the wounded.
Jayne has been invited to the town hall to receive thanks from the Mayor of Lviv.
She said: “My husband and I fell in love with Ukraine and its people when we visited Kyiv and Chernobyl in September 2019. We promised we would return as soon as possible. Unfortunately Covid struck and put a stop to that dream.
“As we were planning a longer trip to Ukraine, Russia invaded. With tears in our eyes we vowed to help in any way we could. We collected aid, worked in a large distribution centre and offered a peaceful, quiet life to a Ukrainian refugee.”
Volunteers at the veteran-run Driving Ukraine workshop in Lviv harden donated vehicles for frontline use before they are used to evacuate the wounded.
So, on Christmas Eve 2022, the couple left their home in a large transit van full of humanitarian aid, headed for a refugee centre on the Poland-Ukraine border – and picked up a Ukrainian refugee in Towcester along the way.
Jayne continued: “Olef had broken down in Germany and had left his Toyota Hilux, packed with very expensive high-end medical supplies destined for the front line, in a car yard owned by Armenians.
“On Christmas Day at 8pm we arrived at our destination, having collected Olef’s lifesaving medical supplies en route.
“The gravity of the situation couldn’t have hit us any harder the following morning when we walked into the dining room to be met with some fifty women and children who had fled their homes.
“When we returned to England, I promised I would make return journeys to Ukraine to help in any way I could.”
Jayne started working for Driving Ukraine, writing press releases on volunteer drivers and their experiences.
She added: “Through reading each volunteer’s story, and their experience of the gruelling but worthwhile trip – and by taking short road trips moving medevac vehicles around the UK – the desire to join one of the amazing convoys has been upper-most in my plans for 2026.”
Since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, Driving Ukraine has mobilised over 1,600 volunteers, completed 52 convoys, and delivered 282 vehicles, raising over £1.8million to support medical evacuation efforts.
Ukrainian medic Denys said: “These vehicles represent more than just four wheels to us – they’re a chance, a lifeline. If I get wounded, these vehicles will be my ambulance.”
In Ukraine, an evacuation attempt is made every nine minutes. Without fast, all-terrain, reliable vehicles, casualties often don’t survive the journey.
The Driving Ukraine convoys are driven by volunteers from all walks of life. In one recent convoy, vehicles were driven by a firefighter, a dental nurse and a retired RAF mechanic.
Driving Ukraine founder Fynn Watt said: “It felt like the best of Great Britain. Just people turning up to help.
“Since the beginning, Driving Ukraine has been about action, not standing by and watching. Maybe we can’t change the course of the war, but we can change the course of an evacuation, and that’s a life saved.
“Jayne has taken on this amazing journey with us and this vehicle she is fundraising for represents our mission, turning generosity and courage into life-saving action.”
Jayne, who is raising funds for the mission herself, added: “I think driving 1,300 miles through seven countries, over four days, to deliver a medevac vehicle for life-saving missions on the front line will be number one on my list of sixty things to do when I’m 60.
“Please help me to do this.”
Visit www.donorbox.org/jayneukraine to donate. Visit www.drivingukraine.org for more information.
