'I'll never forget it': Winnipeg man travels to Ukraine to help residents, work in volunteer kitchen

One Winnipeg man left the safety of his home in Canada to travel to Ukraine and provide help in any way he could.

Brent DePape went to Ukraine in May and stayed for about five weeks as he was deeply concerned by the war’s implications for the people of Ukraine.

While he was there, he worked with the Lviv Volunteer Kitchen, spent time assembling first aid kits, and made camouflage nets in a church basement. DePape also spent 10 days in Kyiv where he helped with the cleanup and repair of homes that were damaged by artillery fire.

He said he wanted to find a way to volunteer in a meaningful way.

“I looked at doing volunteer work based out of Winnipeg and I found that not as easy as I thought it would be to make some meaningful contribution,” DePape said in an interview with CTV Morning Live on Wednesday.

“And I decided to go over there as I learned that many folks from around the world had done that successfully and made a meaningful contribution.”

Looking back on his time in Ukraine, DePape said he felt he made as much of a difference as one person could make.

“I would say that we made a difference, because there’s hundreds of thousands of people there making that same small contribution and it adds up,” he said.

He noted he will never forget the many dedicated volunteers from around the world who were prepared to help the people of Ukraine.

“Tangibly, to see people, just everyday people, coming from everywhere to be with them and support them, it has such a profound impact on them,” he said.

“They feel so supported by that. It was absolutely striking and I’ll never forget it.”

As for his family’s reaction, DePape said his children were prepared as he had told them a few months before. He added that some of his other family members were surprised, but accepting of his decision.

“Some of my siblings were perhaps a little bit surprised that’s because I surprised them actually, I didn’t really raise the subject,” he said.

“But I think that they were quite accepting and supportive.”

DePape said he has some plans to return to Ukraine likely in August or September.

For those who also want to volunteer in Ukraine, he suggests going to the Volunteering in Ukraine website, which has instructions on what you need to do.