Can you help Leighton Buzzard business raise £2,500 to send donations to Ukraine?

A Leighton Buzzard business is raising £2,500 to send the community's "overwhelming" donations to Ukraine.

James Pratt, Liam Mackay, and Dan Telfer, owners of JL Countrywide Logistics LTD, have been collecting items at their warehouse in Chartmoor Road ready to send to the Polish border.

The trio and their helpers have managed to send the "absolute essential items" to the frontline already, but now need the community's help to raise enough money to transport the remaining donations.

James said: "We were expecting a lot of donations but nothing like we have seen so far.

"We arranged to have a 40-foot container delivered to the front lines to get the help to the places it is needed most, we did not however anticipate the amount nor mass of the items that arrived so quickly. This is partly due to the fact we also became the unofficial overspill site for multiple other towns and counites once the news had spread on what we were doing to support the cause.

"The wonderful thing is we have managed to send the absolute essential items already, so help is on the way, but literally everything we have here, and which keeps arriving, is just as essential to get over there ASAP."

Depending on how much the campaign raises, the businessmen will arrange another container or get some of their vans customs checked to drive across to the border.

Meanwhile, an Easter egg donation drive for Ukrainian children has seen local schools donate thousands of eggs.

James added: "We are asking for a little help no matter how small to get any currently remaining and additional donations we receive across to the people from Ukraine.

"Thank you to everyone who has helped in this monumental effort so far.

"You really can’t know how much it means to us all to be able to not only support the efforts to supply the refugees but be able to arrange this for our community to be able to have an outlet for the donations to get where they need to be, and directly."

He told the LBO: "It's human nature, isn't it? I've got my children sitting behind me and the thought of leaving them and going to fight a war is heartbreaking."

James would like to thank: the Peter Bellingham team, Paul and Liam Moriarty, for the use of their warehouse; Energie Fitness for helping to collect donations; Fai Automotive for supplying boxes to put donations in; Sovereign Packaging who gave four pallets full of packaging, cups, cutlery, plates, bowls, and more; Fyne Packaging, who gave four pallets of brand new card board boxes; local schools Brooklands, Cedars, Vandyke, Pulfords, and Wingrave, for donations "by the truckload"; to The Dine Yard ladies - Sarah Janes and Denise Farmer - for organising all donations; Kim Mackay and the VW team for donations; Nelya Pearson and her mum Tanya for labelling all the boxes in Ukrainian; Tesco Leighton Buzzard and local Brownie and Guide groups for donations; James's wife, Harriet, for "being there every day sorting through and organising the boxes".

James added: "To all members of the public who have dropped donations off, big and small, it has been two of the most humbling weeks of our lives and we are so proud of everyone who has helped. Thank you."

On March 14, Phil Culley, Energie Fitnessoperations manager, said: "Once again LB has delivered - since our first pick up on Friday 4th March from Osborne Morris & Morgan Solicitors, we’ve had another six van loads go out.

"We’ve now reached out to the team at The Dine Yard, because they will be sending a container to the Ukraine; the response has been so massive from people."

To donate to the campaign, please visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/jlc-logistics-ukraine-appeal?sharetype=teams&member=18120033&pc=fb_co_campmgmt_w&rcid=r01-164762110305-e555f908a6d811ec&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=p_lico%2Bshare-sheet&fbclid=IwAR2Vtn8-VToICfOJDTj8AzFkGqdfhzYcjQcR13SstYJO_G_GW8QHIfSOczM