A Tooting man has sent 30 boxes of donations to Poland for Ukrainian refugees who have fled the war, with more supplies ready to be packed up and shipped.

Mac Damian, 28, decided to use his home as a drop off point for people donating supplies after being saddened by the news of the war in Ukraine.

He was born in Poland and moved to London with his parents when he was nine.

Mac began asking the wider community for help on Facebook in early March to bring resources such as: batteries, cutlery, blankets, nappies and sanitary products and clothing.

This Is Local London:

He is also picking up donations for those who are unable to bring them themselves.

The boxes range between 3kg to 22kg, with the heavier ones containing medical and sanitary supplies.

Mac told the Wandsworth Guardian: “It started as me buying just a few things to send over originally, and then I thought about friends, neighbours and family helping. I didn’t think it would go as big as it actually did. Next thing I know I have a warehouse full of stuff.

“When I picked up the first donation, my whole car was full from one person. They were just like ‘take everything’.

“That was so nice.”

He was surprised at how many people dropped items off to him considering how close he lives to the White Eagle Club in Balham who have also been collecting for Ukraine.

“It’s amazing that people do actually trust a random person to collect stuff with the hope that it will get there."

Which obviously it will, it just feels really great to see that people are coming together for this,” Mac said.

This Is Local London:

He will be travelling to a Lodz, a city in central Poland for three weeks on Sunday, to visit family and volunteer.

Mac will be assisting Lodz local Government with providing refugees with information, getting people to the right place, and free language courses and potentially organising the supplies that have been sent.

He estimates that he currently has another 20 boxes to pack up, but may need to raise money for the additional shipping.

The first set boxes had the fees donated by marketing company Big Picture UK in Hammersmith.

“My mum is very much involved in trying to find boxes to pack the items in, which is the tricky part really because you can find lots of small boxes, but you never find the ones that are the right size,” Mac explained.

Mac is still accepting donations and says that people are welcome to come drop things off after he has travels to Poland, as someone would be able to pack them up on his behalf.

While he is still in the country, Mac is also happy to come collect items and encourages people to continue the support.

He said: “The main thing that people still want is sanitary stuff, toothpaste, toothbrushes and personal care sort of things.

“There are a lot of women and children, and they will put their kids first but sometimes not think about themselves so much, so it’s nice to have more of these personal care sorts of things so they can be a bit more comfortable. It would be nice to make sure that they feel safe and well looked after.”

You can contact Mac at maciej.pankowski@icloud.com.