We are lucky to have good friends and supporters from all around the world. And we are always glad to welcome them here in Ukraine. In February 2023, we finally met Daan live when he came to Lviv. He brought excellent equipment and spent some days with us exploring Lviv.
The story of Daan’s and Dzyga’s friendship
Daan is a young man from the Netherlands who works as an events manager in culture. He knows a few things about radios because he used them for work. So when he saw Ukrainian soldiers using non-secure amateur radios, he wanted to send them better ones. Then, he started looking for small UA volunteer organizations that help the military. Somehow, Daan came across one of Dimko’s posts on Twitter about a parcel he had sent to Ukrainian soldiers. He wrote to Dimko and told him that a lot of radios were being used that should not be used by the military. And if there is a need, Daan can probably find and send encrypted radios for them. So they agreed to send the first parcel from the Netherlands to Ukraine. Daan found radios in Belgium for a reasonable price and helped with delivery. That was in April, and since then, Daan has been helping Dzyga’s Paw with deliveries and searching for necessary equipment.
Reasons to help Ukraine
Daan says that his motivation to help Ukraine is that he wants Ukraine to win without losing too many people. He also has his reasons not to like Russia because of all the lies after the MH17 crash in 2014. It was a national tragedy for the Dutch people, and Russia was not held accountable for this crime.
Why does Daan trust Dzyga’s Paw?
For Daan, seeing the results of the fund’s work is essential. All the reports with parcels received that we share and also feedback from soldiers would be difficult to fake. Another thing is the trust Dimko showed at the very beginning of their communication; it was an important thing also.