Our joint civil society aid campaign for Ukraine comes to an end with the car pharmacy exchange action. Octavian, ARBÖ and R.U.S.Z thank you for your willingness to donate!
The forwarding agent Octavian from Breitenfurt is our transport partner for pick-up and delivery of donated and second-life appliances. On Fridays, he picks up old large household appliances from donors with his big van and brings them to R.U.S.Z Wien/Lützowgasse. On Mondays he delivers refurbished appliances to our happy customers. Octavian is a long-time companion of the R.U.S.Z., always with an easy joke on his lips, reliable and in a good mood.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Octavian can no longer sleep. He has been living in Austria for 20 years, he was born still in the Soviet Union, in Chișinău, Moldova, as one of the last cohorts he did his military service in the Red Army. He has traveled extensively in the region, lived in Russia, and has many friends and relatives in Ukraine. He cannot believe what is happening there now.
R.U.S.Z. is also stunned; many nationalities work together here, and this conflict does not leave them cold. On the second day of the invasion, the managing director Sepp Eisenrieglers phone rings: Octavian wants to drive to Ukraine with his van, R.U.S.Z is supposed to collect donations. He forwards us an e-mail from friends in Kiev, which deals with the wailing of the civil defense sirens and extreme tension, and concludes with a list of urgently needed emergency medical supplies.
After that, developments come thick and fast: R.U.S.Z uses its channels to call for donations at the Lützowgasse location: Bandages, powerbanks, medicine against cold and pain. First departure: Friday. Collections are also being made in Breitenfurt. The willingness to donate is considerable as expected. The ORF is interested in the civic action, Eisenriegler establishes contact between Octavian and the journalist Matthias Däuble, who accompanies the first trip to the border area and creates the remarkable radio report "Octavian will helfen" ("Octavian wants to help").
Over the next two weeks, donations at R.U.S.Z gradually decrease, while major relief efforts such as Neighbor in Need and international civil society opposition to the invasion grow and gain momentum. Where to find more first aid supplies? The idea of expired medicines that would otherwise be thrown away is making the rounds. At the suggestion of his dentist, Eisenriegler turns to the managing director of ARBÖ Vienna, Günther Schweizer, with the idea of exchanging expiring car pharmacies, and his team devises a campaign in no time at all:
Until Wednesday, March 23, ARBÖ members have the opportunity to exchange their old first-aid kit for a new one in the course of a perceived service. This ensures that important first-aid supplies are available to people in Ukraine and that ARBÖ customers are also safer on Austria's roads.
ARBÖ traffic radio (see above) and meinbezirk.at report. The ARBÖ assumes that 1000 auto pharmacies will run out for the people who have to protect themselves from bombs and grenades in cellars and subway stations in Ukraine.
We thank the many people who have helped to alleviate some of the hardship in the war zone! In Austria, we can consider ourselves lucky that we live in a safe country. And from this also comes a responsibility for solidarity in Europe and the world!
Update:
On March 29, about 1,000 pharmacies were picked up, and ARBÖ added another 1,700 MNS masks and 20 baby car seats. On the morning of April 2, the donations were handed over across the Ukrainian border and transported on to Kiev.
