October 2023, Ford Ranger Icosy
When we bought the T4 "Jirka" from Mr. Kratky, I didn’t think we’d soon have the opportunity to purchase another vehicle from the same owner. Mr. Kratky sent us a text with an offer for an unlisted vehicle, proposing to sell it to us directly at a very good price. The guys who had inspected the T4 "Jirka" took a look and found the vehicle suitable for our purposes, so we bought it. The transaction went smoothly, and Mr. Kratky arranged for temporary transport license plates and everything else needed—many thanks for his support and help!
We try to manage multiple efforts at once, and the time from purchasing a vehicle to transporting it can range from two weeks to two months. It depends on finances, priorities, available capacity for preparing the vehicle, and acquiring necessary supplies. The Ford Ranger Icosy was one of the longer projects—at the time of purchase, we were heading to eastern Ukraine with previous aid, while others helped get the vehicle ready. It's about piecing together small parts, all leading to delivering material to soldiers on the front line.
In the Czech Republic, initial maintenance was done: axle checks, silent block replacement, tire change. We arranged documentation, highway toll stickers, filled up the tank, and Mr. Miroslav and Mr. Viktor headed to the border.
At the border, Vasyl received the car from the team that drove it from the Czech Republic. It was dark, and the car had an orange beacon on the roof (visible in the purchase photos—it was a white car). Though the border was empty, several visibly upset policemen with guns rushed out of a building, asking Vasyl if he had permission to use the beacon. "Why are you driving here with a beacon? This is a state border!" They said they’d check the cameras, trace his route, and demanded to see permits.
When there are uncertainties at the border, you stay there until they’re resolved. A lady handling documents told Vasyl, “Sir, remove that beacon, or they won’t let you through.” So, while she processed the paperwork, Vasyl unscrewed the beacon and tossed it onto the seat.
By the time they were ready to continue, the policemen were luckily asleep again—no beacon, no problem, and they were cleared to proceed. Michal received the car after the border and drove it to Zakarpattia. Michal is a professional driver and knows cars well; he praised the vehicle's performance, which matched Mr. Kratky’s claim about the engine being in excellent condition.
In Zakarpattia, we needed to repair the frame. Initially, there were plans for a local fix, but eventually, the frame was fully reinforced with added crossbeams, properly balanced, and is now doubled.
We had a pre-arranged offer from a supplier in Zakarpattia to paint the car khaki. We rotate among willing volunteers for these jobs, because everyone has a primary occupation to be paid for. The paint job was beautifully done—the car looks excellent. Hats off, thank you for the wonderful work! We only paid for materials—thank you again!
Another donor in Zakarpattia gave us 5 jerry cans, usable for diesel storage—huge thanks for that too!
We then completed the remaining maintenance. Leonid did a full brake inspection, oil changes in the engine and transmission, oil and belt replacement, rear differential and dust boot checks. The labor was free, we only paid for materials—thank you!
On the morning we were to depart, we discovered the fuel tank was leaking. The trip had to be postponed while a replacement tank was found and installed—this hit our budget and plans hard, but we couldn’t hand over a faulty vehicle.
Class 6.A from a local primary school in Zakarpattia, along with Principal Maria, organized a collection to provide a camouflage net for the soldiers. They had been preparing this for a month. We originally planned to deliver two vehicles to eastern Ukraine, but the second vehicle wasn’t ready administratively, so we split the trips, allowing time for this charitable action.
Once ready, Vasyl visited the school, met with the principal and students, and thanked them not just for the net, but also for trench candles, which are made at the school nearly continuously. They’ve made 500 candles so far, but lack the wax to finish them—we’re looking for it in our area.
Students take shifts working on the net—it’s physically demanding. Writing this, it saddens me a bit that innocent children are doing this instead of playing. On the other hand, there's hope: the next generation may not be indifferent, may take responsibility, and be willing to sacrifice comfort, time, or even more for freedom and basic human values.
Every challenge brings a silver lining. For example, on Ukraine’s western side, we had trouble finding a driver for the Ford. If we had taken a second vehicle, we would have lacked drivers. In central Ukraine, drivers were promised, but we still needed someone from the west. Andrej, who joined us on the last trip, volunteered. We were heading to a unit that might have military material beneficial for Andrej’s museum, which gave him added motivation. He also secured a donor for 100 liters of diesel—so one car was covered!
We traveled with a group of volunteers transporting two vehicles. Eventually, they managed to prepare three, so including Vasyl’s van and our Ford, five vehicles headed east.
We arrived in central Ukraine by night. Andrej and the others from central Ukraine had already gone ahead. Two replacement drivers were waiting for us. They took over, and we drove through the night eastward.
The road was foggy almost the entire way, making it a tough trip. We drove 60–80 km/h without breaks, reaching Pavlohrad around 8 a.m. The fog stretched across Donbas. We drove without stops, taking turns constantly.
We waited for geolocation data for the handover and then delivered our vehicle to soldiers from the 4th Rapid Response Brigade of the Ukrainian National Guard near Donetsk.
Besides the car, we delivered all the requested items from the lists dated October 2 and 10, 2023. Additionally, we brought foam with aluminum backing, trench film, jerry cans, axes, connectors, food, energy bars, and non-perishable groceries.
In Vinnytsia, central Ukraine, Andrej said, "I’ll also pick up 'Two Icosy.'" Vasyl said, “I didn’t know what that meant—I thought it was an e-cigarette.” When the two guys joined our car, they explained they were both from Lithuania and named Icas/Icras. Since we couldn’t remember their names, we just called them “Two Icosy.”
When I later met one of them again on another trip in central Ukraine, he and Vasyl laughed at the universal nickname. That’s when we decided to name the Ford Ranger “Icosy”—we’ll never confuse it with another journey.
Our amusement doesn’t change our deep respect and gratitude for the Lithuanian men who’ve long supported Ukraine. One is a retired general. Both contributed generously and personally helped deliver aid to the invaded country.
Andrej asked the general, "Why do you help Ukraine?" The general replied, “Because you’re protecting us.”
СЛАВА УКРАЇНІ! ГЕРОЯМ СЛАВА!
Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!
