We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK) for their exceptional logistical support.

This shipment marks the sixth consignment PhysioNet has sent to Kenya via the British Army, totalling seven 20-ft containers. BATUK oversaw the full journey — from shipping the containers from the UK to Mombasa, and then managing inland transport to Nanyuki or directly to Living Room International.

Over three intensive days, the team on the ground sorted, labelled and prepared:

• Wheelchairs

• Crutches and walkers

• Standing frames

• Therapy and rehabilitation devices

• A vital patient lifter

• And many other essential aids

These items are already being collected by local NGOs, healthcare providers and community groups, with further distributions scheduled in the coming days.

Life-Changing Stories

Among many moving moments, one story stands out:

A man who had been crawling on the floor all his life travelled three hours to reach the facility — and received his first ever wheelchair.

This single moment reflects the true impact of PhysioNet’s work and the dedication of our UK volunteers who prepare each shipment.

The team also highlighted the enormous benefit of the patient lifter, describing it as a “blessing”for both the hospice and its caregivers. An occupational therapist visiting from Switzerland was on hand to train staff in its safe use, greatly improving comfort and dignity for inpatients at Living Room International’s Kimbilio facility.

Sustainable Innovation

Our partners also shared photos showing how previous PhysioNet containers have been repurposed into practical office spaces — a brilliant example of sustainable development and resourceful reuse.

Photos & Gallery

Photos & Gallery

📸 View the full photo gallery here thanks to Living Room International and Bawa Ndege:-

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1e-VjhJ9mOwyPtC_ODtIQ7qO2bdWyP2ks?usp=sharing

With Thanks

PhysioNet extends heartfelt thanks to everyone involved — UK volunteers, donors, partner organisations and the dedicated teams in Kenya.

Together, we are changing lives, one container at a time.

Since then we have sent 22 more consignments – the equivalent of 33 shipping containers – directly to Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and beyond.

By partnering with Ukrainian-registered hauliers and drivers, our aid reaches those on the “front line” who need it most, safely and directly.

So far, over 17,100 items – enough to equip at least three hospitals – have been shipped from our depots in North Yorkshire, Cambridge, and Bristol. The total new value of these supplies is estimated at £4.5 million – a remarkable achievement for a charity run by just 100 volunteers, relying entirely on donations and recycled disability equipment.

The challenge we face

Unlike our usual projects, where recipients cover the transport costs, these shipments to Ukraine are fully self-funded – around £5,000 per lorry.

Until late 2023, we received generous support from Rotary organisations, charities, businesses, and individuals. But over the past year, funding has all but disappeared, and no long-term financial backing is available.

We are deeply grateful to Mail Force, the Persula Foundation, and one kind individual who together funded five recent consignments. Since then, PhysioNet has been forced to cover the full cost of the last five shipments ourselves.

Yet the need in Ukraine remains desperate – and we are determined to keep helping for as long as the war continues.

To do that, we urgently need donations to fund transport. Without this support, future deliveries may not be possible.

Anatolly – an unsung hero

On 8th August 2024, Ukrainian driver Anatolly Saliy arrived in Yorkshire, and after running out of driving hours, he was forced to spend two days in a layby before reaching PhysioNet’s depot – where he then helped to load his own lorry. 

Later, using Google Translate, we sent him a message of thanks and safe travels. His reply, in Ukrainian, was simple and heartfelt:

“Thank you for helping our people.”

Anatolly has been transporting humanitarian aid to Ukraine since the war began. At the Polish–Ukrainian border, he met two fellow drivers carrying military supplies. The contrast was stark – and deeply moving.

They told him, “We wish we were carrying humanitarian aid instead of weapons.”

As Anatolly drove through Zaporizhzhia, he passed ruined buildings, displaced families, and silent towns – stark reminders of a nation suffering. Despite everything, he looks forward to his next journey – a quiet testament to the power of human compassion.

Help us keep this lifeline open

Every shipment we send carries hope, dignity, and essential medical care for people whose lives have been shattered by war.  Without urgent funding, we cannot keep these vital deliveries going.

Your donation – no matter the size – will help cover the cost of the next lorry bound for Ukraine.

Together, we can keep hope alive.

Please DONATE NOW

There were two spare standing frames at the Romanian centre which fitted into the cars of the Moldovans. Two days later they were in use! Before receiving the equipment, neither child had the experience of standing.

The little girl was very happy with the result and her mum was amazed! They took the stander home with them and will be followed up in two months.

The little boy can now access all areas of the rehabilitation centre in the stander, and can reach and play much more than he could when he was lying down.

“Thank you for this amazing gift!” was the response from the paediatrician Dr. Gincota.

“In July 2023, I met a real gentleman named Harry Franks. He told me about the wonderful charity in which he is involved and the work they are doing to get equipment to where it is most needed. I was interested and very happy to respond. However, I had absolutely no idea, of the scope of work, nor of the commitment and dedication of its volunteers.

We continued corresponding, and while I was with my husband on sabbatical in the UK Harry offered to present our NGO, Khethiwe Rehab Centre, to the board. This was followed by confirmation that PhysioNet would ship a container to South Africa for Khethiwe and the other organisations that we work with. I honestly do not think that the reality of this gift dawned on me until I saw the word container, it is just too large to take in. When you have spent over 30 years working in vastly underserved areas and making do with whatever comes to hand, such generosity is almost beyond belief.

Now here we are, the container has arrived and I can hardly believe my eyes. My staff are just speechless because they cannot believe so much equipment could ever come our way. Are we really getting all this equipment? This is way beyond our wildest dreams. After all, some of our clients live in shocking conditions in single rooms or shacks, often with no water or electricity… They are all poor and struggling to make ends meet, but characterised by the fierce self-sacrificial love that a mother has for her child with disabilities. They will all be delighted to be blessed in a way they never imagined and we will be filled with joy and laughter when we distribute this incredible gift.

Thank you seems inadequate for what you, at PhysioNet are doing for us and thousands of others who are among the most marginalised in society; and living with a child who has a disability. Do you even know what an amazing blessing you are to those who benefit from your efforts?

On behalf of the team at Khethiwe, and the kiddies and their families that we serve, our delighted thanks and huge excitement as we wait to see what this huge container has in store for us. With our delighted thanks and anticipation.”

Glenys Ross; Andiswa Zukulu and the Khethiwe Team

From our perspective TDAI and the tight-knit Tigray community in the UK constitute an ideal recipient. The photo below includes a good number of Tigray people, some of whom had come from London and Edinburgh, proudly waving their flag.

‘Muscle’ provided by half-a-dozen Tigray men proved invaluable as the container, which had been pre-loaded from a facility in Leeds, needed to be partially unloaded before being filled with the most suitable equipment.

A challenging journey lies ahead. North Yorkshire to a UK port. Then, because of problems in the Red Sea, the long way round by sea via the Cape to Djibouti. Finally the 660km overland to Makelle. It is not surprising then that this, and the two previous shipments, cost nearly £30k! (These costs were paid promptly by a Tigray charity in London.)

The photo above shows Dr. Abraha Derso and his wife Sharon, cutting a special cake. The cake was our way of expressing our appreciation for them mobilising Tigrayan support in UK and also for their contacts in Makelle, essential for getting the first consignment safely to destination. Without their help these shipments simply would not have happened.

“In a previous letter I didn’t really mention all my gratitude and appreciation for the wheelchair that you gave me. Thank you very, very much! I have been using it for the past year and in all this time I feel absolute and boundless freedom!

On a visit to Manchester I had my first ballroom dancing class. I dreamed of trying dancing in a wheelchair and I finally succeeded! In that wheelchair I started a completely new chapter in my life, as a professional wheelchair dancer. I won a dance competition for people with disabilities “Dance Westminster” and I did it in your wheelchair! Afterwards I took part in a number of training workshops around the country. I was working as an assistant in “Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance”. We were introducing students to dance involving physically disabled people. I also finished the first year of a programme for young choreographers. Then last April I toured with the UK’s first all-wheelchair dance company “Propel Dance”, where we re-imagined the fantastical fairytale ‘The Snow Queen’.

Hopefully next year there will be an opportunity to do a tour around the whole UK. I was also selected and accepted into the National Dance Youth Company! I just have no more words, all these amazing moments happened thanks to you and your truly significant gift! Thank you very much! I certainly wouldn’t have done any of this without your help!“

“The process of importing, checking, transportation and storage has now been completed! I have no words to describe how GRATEFUL we are for your kind donation! Thank you so much! …We are amazed to be honest! … I am so happy that we can finally fulfil the dreams of our families! Thank you again.”

The picture shows Eugen, who, we are told, is benefiting from “independence and better social interaction” through using a new powered wheelchair which was sent in the consignment. We’re delighted to hear this as we are to hear that Lia, Elisei and Matei (and many others) are similarly making good use of the equipment donated.

Ukraine: The first of two consignments, was loaded on 28th October from Yorkshire. Destination a military hospital in Zaporizhzhia.

South Africa: The first consignment to this country since May 2022, was loaded from Yorkshire on 2nd December. The destination was the town of White River and a mixed paediatric/adult load for Paediatric Care Africa and the local Rotary club. Funding came from the recipients

South Africa: The second consignment to South Africa, was loaded from PhysioNet (SW) on 9th December. The destination was Durban and another mixed paediatric/adult load for Khetiwe (Rehabilitation Centre for Children with Disabilities) and the Chatsworth Rotary club. A donor in UK covered the shipping costs.

Zimbabwe: This the thirteenth consignment to Zimbabwe, was loaded from Yorkshire on 20th January. Destination Harare and another mixed paediatric/adult load for RESCU and St. Christopher’s Home. As before the costs to destination were met by an international charity with links to Zimbabwe.

Ukraine: This the second Ukraine consignment was finally loaded from PhysioNet (SE) on 27th January, again for Zaporizhzhia. Loading was delayed for over a month, as the trucking company reported problems at the border with long queues of vehicles waiting to enter Ukraine.

Ethiopia: The first consignment to Ethiopia was loaded from Yorkshire on 15th July 2023 and should have been reported in the last Newsletter. It arrived safely, but only after coping with many bureaucratic problems. This, the second consignment was again loaded from Yorkshire on 24th February destined for the Tigray Development Association International (TDAI) in Makelle. A challenging loading in UK, but with fewer problems in Ethiopia than the first consignment.

Kenya: A 20ft non-returnable container was loaded on 9th March from Yorkshire, although the vessel only sailed on 23rd March. As before the consignment was partly funded by the British Army with the recipient being a charity near Eldoret.

Ethiopia: The third of these consignments was loaded on 23rd March from Yorkshire, again destined for TDAI in Makelle. It was PhysioNet’s 150th load and is described in more detail on page one.

Third party shipments: A modest four collections totalling 29 items, were collected from Yorkshire for Ghana, Malawi, Yemen and Zambia.