Falls Twp. Police Donate Bulletproof Vests, Helmets To Ukrainians

The invasion of Ukraine has impacted Bucks Countians deeply, and Falls Township Police Officer Dean Stecklair knows that all too well.

The family of the patrolman’s wife immigrated to the U.S. from Kyiv, Ukraine and Vilnius, Lithuania in the late in 1980s. They still have family and friends in the county being invaded by Russia.

With dozens of Ukrainian-Americans in attendance Friday morning, the Falls Township Police Department donated extra bulletproof vests, combat boots, ballistic helmets, life-saving tourniquets, and humanitarian goods, like canned foods.

The needed items were picked up at the police station by members of the local Ukrainian-American community and prepared for shipment from the U.S. to Poland, where they will be moved into Ukraine.

Organizers said they were unable to reveal too many details on the logistics, but private planes had been chartered to bring donated goods from America to Europe.

“These supplies are going to help Ukrainians save lives,” Stecklair said.

He encouraged other public safety agencies and hospitals to step up and donate unused equipment to help those fighting for freedom in Ukraine.

“It is our hope that this will provide some measure of relief and aid directly from the men and women of the Falls Township Police Department to those who are in danger in Ukraine,” police Chief Nelson Whitney said.

The police departments keeps their bulletproof vests and helmets once they pass the manufacture’s expiration date and cycle in new ones for officers, but Whitney said the vests remain viable.

Igor Klymemko, a Ukrainian-American helping gather supplies, thanked the police department for their donation to help the citizens of his home country.

“What Ukraine is doing is the frontline of humanity,” Klymemko said, adding the donation will help protect people.

Among the gathered crowd at the police station were two men who will be heading to Ukraine this week to offer aid and even fight if needed.

The men were given protective vests and helmets to take with them in their travels.

Whitney and Stecklair thanked the Falls Township Board of Supervisors for their support of the donation.

Stecklair was the impetus for the police department’s donations, Whitney said.

“Like the rest of the world, we have all watched in horror as Russia invaded Ukraine and brought unprovoked war and suffering to Europe,” the chief said.

The police department will be a 24-7 donation location for equipment and supplies needed in the Ukraine. The items will be transported to Europe.

For more information, visit this post on the Falls Township police Facebook page.

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