Clarksville Navy veteran, Nashville nonprofit help Ukrainian families in war zone

Frank Tate, a U.S. Navy veteran living in Clarksville, recently browsed the aisles of a grocery store near the Ukraine and Poland border, loading 27 shopping carts with toiletries, food and snacks for children.

Tate teamed with other Middle Tennessee volunteers in a desperate search for necessities at the Archem grocery store near Rzeszow, Poland.

Through Aerial Recovery Group, a Nashville nonprofit group, Tate and other volunteers provided lifesaving support during Russia's escalating conflict with Ukraine.

"I probably spent $1,000 on chocolate," said Tate, who served two tours in Iraq.

"When we get a kid in a car or on a bus, we are handing things out to try and lift their spirits."

Tate said the aid group has supported more than 300 orphans, helping them reach safety and giving them supplies. The tally increases daily, including helping families.

Global Empowerment Mission, a disaster relief nonprofit, raised about $7.5 million dollars at the time of Tate's return home. Tate said with supplies, transportation and other expenses, volunteers spend $7,000 to $10,000 per day to help Ukrainian families.

For Tate, it all started March 1 — he flew to Poland.

The following day, he was loading grocery carts next to volunteers like Clarksville resident Josh Martinez, who is still in Ukraine. Tate is in the midst of a short reprieve before he plans to return to Poland at the end of March.

He plans to bring bulletproof vests for children.

Clarksville native Tim Wilson also traveled to Europe with Divone Price, a pastor at Clarksville's Awaken Church.

Price said there is a lot of bureaucratic red tape with saving orphans in Ukraine because human trafficking has become a growing issue.

"Out here, you kind of see the worst in humanity and the best of humanity," Price said.

Tate told the Leaf-Chronicle there are eight to 12 volunteers working at a time. He said it has been a team effort to get orphaned refugees to safety.

Tate wanted to get involved in Europe after providing support for years in dangerous environments. In 2021, he traveled to Haiti following the nation's devastating earthquakes.

Like many, Martinez was following news of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and wanted to get involved. The experience marks his first in a warzone.

"I've seen plenty of natural disasters," he said, "but I can tell you that the manmade disasters are exponentially worse."

Could not sit back

Tate and other volunteers spend $20,000 on various supplies — all supporting families, fleeing homes in Ukraine.

Tate, a father of three, said he could not stand by and leave the children and families in Ukraine without support.

The fear is real.

If volunteers are lucky, Tate said, they get four hours of sleep a night and take a five minute break every eight hours.

With bombings at hospitals, residential areas and other non-military buildings, the group is always at risk for attacks as Russian forces continue to push into western Ukraine.

"Air raid alarms are going off about every hour to three hours, primarily in the afternoon," Tate said. "There are families fleeing their homes that are being gunned down."

Tate said as the group drives around the region to assist orphans, air raids continue to sound off, forcing volunteers to seek shelter. Thanks to a mapping system, volunteers and families can quickly access safe locations.

The mapping system was developed by Wilson and other technical support experts.

"My first time going to a drop off to Lviv (Ukraine) was kind of a shock to me," Wilson said.

"We live in America, we live very comfortable, very safe environment, and just to see these kids, the shock on their faces, these looks on their faces and the nervousness... They don't know when the next bomb is going to come from."

While food, water and hygiene supplies are important to Ukrainian families, Tate said there have been special moments for the volunteers that put a smile on a child's face by distributing toys.

'Ripped away from your home'

"This is traumatic," Tate said. "This is not a house caught on fire, and we're going to rebuild it. This is you're being ripped away from your home."

Price, who is Martinez's brother-in-law and a former U.S. Army Captain, said attention to detail is saving children.

Along with the destruction around the cities in Ukraine ravaged by war, Price said many of the children are suffering from emotion pain.

There are times of levity, though, as some children will smile, play and dance when the volunteers play music on a boombox.

When refugees reach the Polish border, Tate said they receive travel vouchers to fly anywhere in Europe, in effort to alleviate overcrowding in Poland and other neighboring countries.

As Russia's invasion continues, Tate hopes financial support for Aerial Recovery Group continues to provide families with food, water and other needs.

Donations can be made at the group's Facebook page, www.facebook.com/donate/361428035829624/ and at www.aerialrecoverygroup.com/.

Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on Twitter @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to TheLeafChronicle.com.

This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Clarksville veteran answering call to help Ukrainian refugees