A Fairfax County man is on a personal mission to help as many people as he can in the war-torn country. News4’s Derrick Ward reports.
A Fairfax County man is on a journey to Ukraine, after making it a personal mission to help as many people as he can in the war-torn country.
Chris Romano was packed and ready to go on Tuesday, mustering seven suitcases full of donations from his condo in Reston.
"[It's] really adorable stuff," said Romano. "Like, look at this beautiful jacket, it's in perfect shape."
All of the donations -- soap, disposable medical gloves, clothes -- are practical items that we may take for granted, but which will be a godsend for citizens under seige.
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"These are some woolen pants. I wouldn't wear these, but they're pretty heavy duty, so I figured maybe somebody will take advantage of them," Romano said, holding up a pair of dark, folded pants.
Romano got the idea last month, after a visit to Warsaw, Poland.
"Just kind of talking to the Poles, and these people were genuinely frightened, and they were telling me they're really concerned for the people in Ukraine, and that they had this list of things they wanted to give them," Romano said.
So he started planning: getting the proper papers, making the contacts and seeking support in the U.S. for the return trip.
That support was more than he ever expected.
"The people of Northern Virginia have been insanely generous," Romano said.
Now, his condo looks like a relief warehouse. It's also led to an unexpected calculus of packing weight and size, since he's flying commercial.
"I get three bags of 70 pounds, and like 78 linear inches or something, that I get to take on for free," Romano explained. "And I have seven bags, so I need to figure out how to get four more on there at minimal cost."
Contacts in Ukraine, an interpreter, and people in the diplomatic community will all help navigate local laws, and a refugee family will help him on the ground to get the aid where it's needed, like orphanages and clinics.
"There's acetaminophen, and then ibuprofen, alcohol wipes, I got alcohol preps, I got duct tape," Romano said, pulling out various plastic bags full of supplies from one of the suitcases.
He plans to land in Poland on Wednesday, rent a car, and drive the rest of the way to the border. He expects his mission to take about four days.
Even with all of his advanced work, Romano isn't certain he'll get everything across the border to Ukraine. He says he's more certain about his safety -- but he's had to reassure his family.
"I'm pretty committed to doing this, and I am pretty far east," Romano said. "I keep telling my kids, 'hey, look, I'm 900 miles from the combat.'"
He's also a veteran, an airborne ranger, so he says he's realistic about the risks.
It's something Romano says he has to do for people facing far more danger in their own homeland.
"These people are the most impressive combat warriors I've ever seen in my life," Romano said. "They're holding back the Russian army!"
