Charlie Becker, and his son, Chad, have completed two humanitarian aid missions to the country of Ukraine since the conflict with Russia has begun.

Becker explained that both trips have happened almost impulsively.

“My son would give me a call on Thursday about possibly doing a trip to Ukraine for humanitarian aid, and by the next Monday morning, we’re on board a plane to do so with more than 200 pounds of supplies to take with us,” Becker said.

Becker said without his son, he wouldn’t be able to provide much in line of supplies, but Chad, with his connections and emergency medical training, was able to collect needed supplies and offer some aid along the front lines.

Their first trip took them from Des Moines to Chicago, Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, and then on to Warsaw, Poland.

“The people in Poland are incredibly supportive,” Becker said.

He didn’t expect anyone in Poland to know about Iowa, but a friend of one of their hosts was a fan of the band Slipknot, and knew the band was from Iowa.

From Warsaw, the two traveled via car to Krakow, Poland, and the border with Ukraine.

Warsaw would remain the base apartment they worked from, in case anything went wrong.

Their first stop was to the military hospital in Poland, which was shut off from outside help at the time.

“That first trip was learning a lot of what not to do,” Becker said. “We learned that things like expired medicine are not something anyone wants to deal with, and that to distribute more care and supplies, we needed to be properly credentialed to do so.”

Becker said the day they left Kyiv was the day Russia blew up an oil field in town.

“That was literally the most that happened,” Becker said.

The second mission trip in 2023, the duo had ultrasound machines they were trying to deliver to certain hospitals, on top of additional medical supplies.

That trek took them from Des Moines to Chicago, to Warsaw, then Moldova. The duo planned to travel to Odessa, Ukraine.

“Moldova proved to be a super short trip, but they lost a portion of our luggage,” Becker said. “Our biggest concern at that moment was just getting out of Moldova and to Ukraine.”

Becker said conditions in Ukraine mandated curfews after 11 p.m.

“The stores we were seeing were full of food and groceries, but we were a distance from the front lines at the time,” Becker said.

The one thing Becker noted was that there was a lack of children in the streets and elsewhere, likely having evacuated elsewhere.

He also said he had to constantly keep in the back of his head that they were in an active war zone. Helmets and flak jackets were required to be worn.

And life goes on, despite everything else. Becker and Chad are looking to make a third humanitarian trek, but the election has put that on hold until later.

“We hope to get back there soon,” Becker said.

An attendee asked what was the most valued item they delivered. Becker said the ultrasound machines were hugely popular.

Another asked how the State Department was able to aid citizens abroad. “Usually, you indicate to the state department your itinerary,” Becker said. “We just didn’t work with the state department on these visits.”

Becker was asked about the immigrants in Ukraine who had relocated. Becker said there were a number who moved to Poland at the war’s start, but many have since returned home.

“Many thought Ukraine was just going to be flattened by Russia, but that wasn’t the case,” Becker said.

As to the best way to support Ukraine – check with their area churches.