Eoin O’Reilly, CEO of AllView Healthcare, with children from St Patrick’s School, Greystones.
A group of Greystones volunteers have set off on a 3,500-kilometre journey across Europe to bring vital aid and vehicles to war-torn Ukraine and the centrepiece of the convoy will be an ambulance donated by a healthcare firm whose CEO is Greystones local Eoin O’Reilly.
“As a healthcare company we know only too well the reality of ill people and what they need so it’s our duty to help those in need,” said Eoin.
He co-founded AllView Healthcare, which is based in Carrickmines, south Dublin, and is Ireland’s largest dermatology service with clinics around the country.
Eoin said the ambulance, which is fitted out with essential medical supplies, will be going to a paediatric hospital in Ukraine. He will be driving the ambulance accompanied by a group of friends, primarily from Greystones, as part of a convoy delivering sports utility vehicles (SUVs), a minibus and a truck along with nearly €500,000 worth of essential supplies for the Ukrainian people.
In all, 22 men will drive 14 vehicles, each loaded with medical supplies travelling through Belgium, Germany and Poland en route to Ukraine. The journey has been organised by Sammy Byrne and Finola Harrington, founders of the philanthropic organisations Jeeps for Peace and What About Us.
The team will drive the supplies deep into Ukraine, a country still enduring daily attacks from Russian forces. Mr Byrne emphasised the urgency of the mission, noting that the average lifespan of a four-wheel-drive vehicle on the frontline is less than three months. SUVs play a critical role in field hospital work, transporting injured soldiers from war zones, making them ideal for carrying medical supplies.
Generous contributions for the aid convoy have come from various organisations and companies, including AllView Healthcare and PetStop in Carrickmines and Caterhire in Sandyford – along with all major Dublin private hospitals and the HSE – helping to fund over €500,000 worth of critical supplies.
For security reasons the team is not disclosing their exact route or the location of the vehicle handovers in Ukraine.
They departed from Greystones on Thursday September 26, with a blessing at St Patrick’s Church and a heartfelt send-off from a choir of St Patrick’s school children.
