One Seat in Coach, 36 Suitcases and Enough Kevlar to Fight a War

Ukrainian-Americans have sent military gear to their countrymen to combat Russian-supported separatists since 2014. Now, their push to get helmets, boots and body armor to Ukrainian civilian-soldiers has ramped up, but traditional shipping companies can no longer fly into Ukraine. As Matt Stieb reports in New York Magazine, getting bags of equipment into Ukraine requires a symphony of coordination, generosity, lack of sleep and, once there, bravery. He traces the delivery of 36 checked duffel bags from US supporters to a traveler headed to Warsaw and then to the van driver who ferries them over the border into Ukraine. Once the hardy driver delivers the shipment, the cycle starts again.