NEWNow you can listen to the articles from Fox News!
A Florida doctor who was spending his retirement years teaching and volunteering recently returned to work after witnessing the devastation caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Instead of returning to his private practice in Sarasota, Florida, Dr. Paul Runge flew thousands of miles to help Ukrainian babies and children.
“I was not ready to sit down and do nothing for the rest of my life,” he told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, during a telephone interview while in Ivano-Frankivsk, a city in western Ukraine. “I was sitting at home like everyone else, watching [the war] unfold and just wonder what I could do. “
IVANO-FRANKIVSK, UKRAINE – FEBRUARY 23, 2021 – A non-contact thermometer at the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Council Clinical Hospital that treats people with COVID-19, Ivano-Frankivsk, western Ukraine.
(Yurii Rylchuk / Ukrinform / Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Runge then contacted some contacts in western Ukraine and left for the war-torn country on 4 July. During a 10-day visit, the retired ophthalmologist helped doctors from all over Ukraine.
BIDEN WARN PUTIN AGAINST THE USE OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS IN UKRAINE: “NOT”
Runge began his journey 80 miles north of Lviv, before joining the neonatal intensive care unit at the Ivano-Frankivsk Children’s Hospital. He also helped a nearby military hospital.
“I was really excited when I realized that, number 1, they wanted me and number 2, I could really help,” Runge said. “I don’t want to be like a bull in a Chinese store and tell everyone ‘hey, you have to do it this way, that’s how we do it.’ but I really enjoyed being here. “
“(The doctors) are very enthusiastic. They are not driven by money,” he added. “They want to do the best possible job for their patients. It’s a unique and refreshing experience.”
The July visit was just the beginning for Runge, who returned to Ukraine on 10 September.
UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY SAYS A COLLECTIVE TOMB DISCOVERED IN IZIUM AFTER THE RETREAT OF RUSSIAN TROOPS
The board-certified ophthalmologist says he intends to spend the rest of the month in Ivano-Frankivsk, helping where he can and making a difference despite ongoing war efforts.
“This morning we were awakened by air raid sirens and when I got to the hospital, all the patients and staff were in the basement bomb shelter,” Runge said in a statement. “Nothing unusual happened and we were back to work in less than an hour.”
SIVERSK, DONETSK PROVINCE, UKRAINE, JULY 08: Ukrainian soldier rides atop a tank to the battlefield near Siversk, Ukraine, July 08, 2022.
(Narciso Contreras Agency / Anadolu via Getty Images)
The struggle for survival is evident throughout Ukraine and speaks of their determination to fend off their biggest opponent.
“(The Ukrainians) have a common cause. All they talk about is how the country has come together to defeat these tyrants. They don’t think they are anything but winning this war,” he said.
As for the chance to help, Runge remains grateful: “I have to pinch myself to make sure I don’t dream.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Russia first invaded Ukraine on February 24, in what many experts believed would be a quick victory. The Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully defended their capital Kiev, made progress in repelling Russian invaders on the eastern border.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
