David Kirichenko is a Ukrainian-American freelance journalist. Ever since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, David has volunteered to help Ukrainian refugees on the ground in Mexico, Romania, the United States, and Ukraine. Collaborating with Dobra Sprava, a Dnipro-based non-profit organization, David coordinates the procurement and delivery of essential supplies for Ukrainian troops on the front lines. His contributions have facilitated the provision of critically-needed items such as drones, generators, and Starlink communication systems. David can be found on the social media platform X @DVKirichenko.
In the summer of 2022, I had the opportunity to spend nearly a month volunteering in Ukraine. I came to Ukraine with some savings to use that money where it would be needed most (ultimately buying a van to help support evacuations from Kherson). While helping to clean up destroyed buildings in Irpin and Bucha, both sites of documented massacres, I connected with Dobra Sprava (Good Cause). This organization, which is run by Ukrainian volunteers in Dnipro, delivers humanitarian supplies and evacuates refugees from cities and villages on the front lines of the war.
I connected with Dobra Sprava through Kateryna Hora by posting on a volunteer Telegram channel. I was looking to borrow a sleeping bag to go camping with a group that spends a few days camping and cleaning up destroyed buildings. However, upon meeting for coffee, Kateryna told me she works with Dobra Sprava in Dnipro and suggested we go there to work with them. Within a few days, I was in Donbas, evacuating refugees from hotspots such as Bakhmut. After these experiences, my conviction was that we must prioritize supporting the Ukrainian army as they are fighting for the most important human values: life and freedom.
When I reached out to Alina Holovko, the lead coordinator of Dobra Sprava, she informed me that they needed more volunteers. However, she also gave me a unique perspective on the potential impact a volunteer from the United States could have on the organization. She painted a vivid picture for me, emphasizing that my visit wouldn’t just lift the spirits of the tireless local volunteers. It would also shine a light of optimism for those living on the frontlines of the war and to show local civilians that people from abroad do care about them.
With a train ticket to Dnipro in hand, I joined the ranks of Dobra Sprava to aid their evacuation efforts. We gathered supplies and prepared vans for our morning commute towards Donetsk Oblast each night. As the curfew lifted at 5 AM, we set off on our journey, approaching the increasingly dangerous front lines.
The situation on the front lines for Ukrainian soldiers is much more dire than what is portrayed in official government narratives or in the media.The streams of ambulances and vehicles carrying the dead and injured out of cities like Bakhmut attest to the intense suffering and loss being endured by Ukrainian forces. The roads out of cities like Sloviansk and Bakhmut are filled with ambulances taking these soldiers out, and it was heart-wrenching to witness the endless streams of the ambulances while we were driving in. It is a constant reminder of the sacrifices soldiers make to defend Ukraine’s freedom.
I remember the first time I entered Bakhmut was in August 2022; there was non-stop shelling as the Russians had been attempting to besiege the city for many months. The scene was apocalyptic. It was a cloudy day, and fire and smoke engulfed the city. We needed to be at the rally points at an exact time in order not to endanger the folks who gathered to be evacuated or to pick up humanitarian aid.
During one visit to Bakhmut in September 2022, I came to distribute aid in a neighborhood where the buildings were still burning from fresh Russian strikes. Local residents said not everyone was able to make it out alive. I had an elderly grandpa ask me to help bury the dead. Instead, I told him to ask the Ukrainian soldiers to help, as our mission was to deliver aid and evacuate people as quickly as possible. The more time we spent there, the more likely that a Russian strike could hit us and once we began to gather people, so it was our responsibility to leave as quickly as possible. There have been instances where locals gathered to receive aid or to be evacuated and they were hit by Russian strikes while waiting with others.
While distributing aid, I once saw an older woman come to collect aid and present a Russian passport. I was dumbfounded and frankly disturbed at the sight of a Russian passport. While talking to a few elderly locals, it seemed that Russian propaganda had wreaked havoc on their minds for many years, and they were waiting for liberation on behalf of the Russian army. Somehow, they could not fathom that it was the Russian army shooting artillery shells at them and killing their neighbors.
The people who stayed behind in Bakhmut live in a warzone. There is no electricity or water, and people rely entirely on the humanitarian aid organizations like Dobra Sprava bringing aid. The government continues to plead for people to evacuate, but many refuse to do so. While hiding in a basement, taking cover from Russian artillery strikes, we chatted with some locals, asking them to evacuate. A mother of two responded, saying: “Where will we go? We will be homeless in another city. I’m unemployed and have no savings. How can I leave my home? Who needs us over there?”
As a volunteer with Dobra Sprava, I witnessed the courage of those who placed themselves in harm’s way for the sake of others. Each day brought new challenges and dangers as we were assigned different routes for evacuation based on the call requests we received. It was a sobering realization to witness the apathy of civilians as they linger amid the destruction until the last possible moment. Their day-to-day existence is shrouded in uncertainty.
Within the ruins of cities like Bakhmut, I was granted a glimpse into the challenges that Ukrainian soldiers are facing. The stubbornness of civilians who refused to leave only added to the difficulties, as their presence complicated the work of Ukrainian soldiers and made their mission even more complicated. The Russian aggressors have no care for civilians or human life–they kill and destroy everything in sight.
It became evident that our primary focus should be providing as much support as possible to the Ukrainian army. Let us not forget that this war can end soon with the right amount of military aid for the Ukrainian army. The quicker we act, the sooner the suffering will end, and the cycle of violence and Russian oppression will be broken.
How you can help: If you want to donate to support Ukrainian defenders with protective gear and life-saving equipment, please continue donating to Ukraine Aid Ops.