Driving aid to their neighbours
Where words are turned into action – the non-profit organisation Brüderhilfe Wort und Tat e.V. (“Fraternal Aid ‘Words and Actions’ Registered Association”) is currently transporting aid supplies to war zones in Ukraine several times a month – with the support of many helpers, who work exclusively on a voluntary basis, and a MAN TGX 18.460.
What started as a small garage-based operation about ten years ago is now an officially registered aid organisation that provides practical help where it is needed most. Currently, this applies to war zones in Ukraine, where the Brüderhilfe team has been on the ground since the first days of the war. The organisation collects goods, appliances, food and clothes in Germany and then drives them across the border up to about 600 kilometres inland.
“We drive for our neighbours.”
Is how the project’s founder, Waldemar Klassan, describes the approach to the relief operations, “every sack of potatoes, every piece of bedding and every wheelchair that arrives in the war zone helps.” All participants contribute with what they can or want to give. The helpers include farmers, craftspeople and many others, as well as professional truck drivers who ensure that the goods are transported safely. “In the first 23 days of the war alone, our mission sent out a total of 17 fully loaded trucks,” says Waldemar. As for the founder, he is pleased with every filled truck that crosses the border. The person sitting behind the wheel is whoever has the time at that moment. Among the volunteers, there are many pensioners or drivers who are on holiday. Waldemar himself also steps in when there is a need. So far, all of the 40 drivers have been male. However, the project would also love to see female drivers. Waldemar adds that the most important thing is the experience that a driver brings to the table. For example, he says that knowledge of rules governing driving times and dealing with customs regulations are important factors.
And, needless to say, the use of reliable vehicles is key. One such vehicle is a MAN TGX 18.460, which the association obtained from the MAN TopUsed range of pre-owned vehicles. The purchase of the red MAN TGX was co-initiated by Victor Schröder, an employee of the MAN service partner Heinrich Heiden GmbH in Düren, Germany. Schröder himself often volunteers on one of the Brüderhilfe trucks to Ukraine.
Since ‘the lion’ joined as one of the team’s three trucks, everyone has been wanting to drive it, “because it drives so nicely,” Waldemar laughs. And, it goes without saying, it offers the comfort and reliability that drivers need on long journeys. Waldemar continues that there are often traffic jams up to 28 kilometres long at the border crossings, and sometimes diversions of 500 kilometres in order to avoid the waiting time, which can be between four and six days. “Actions not words” is a principle that the volunteers of Brüderhilfe Wort und Tat e.V. embody both in life and on the road.
