Seasoned world traveler heads to Polish-Ukrainian border, steps up for Ukrainian war refugees

CHICAGO (CBS) — A Chicagoan with a passion for traveling took one of his most recent adventures to the most unlikely destinations – the border of the war zone in Ukraine.

As CBS 2’s Charlie De Mar reported, Ted Nims is well on his way to achieving his goal of visiting every country. He Zoomed with us from Mexico.

“I’m at 144 of the 193 UN countries is where I’m at right now,” Nims said of his travel progress.

But with the war raging in Ukraine and Nims back home in Chicago, he felt compelled to knock another two countries off his list — Poland and Moldova. He went not as a tourist but to help.   

“I’m married, and there’s a list of protected countries for my wife that I’m not supposed to go without her that she especially wants to go to – and Poland was one,” Nims said.

But Nims got the go-ahead, and without much of a plan, he headed for the Ukrainian-Polish border. There, he registered to drive Ukrainian refugees anywhere they needed to go.

“The first five days or so in in Poland and it was nonstop driving,” Nims said. “The people looking for rides are almost all young mothers with very young children.”

Nims showed us a photo of himself driving a group who were all forced to leave their homes in Ukraine. The woman in the front seat was traveling to a small town where she met a friend, while the woman in the back traveled with her 1-month-old son and teenage daughter.

“Just seeing the kids separated from their fathers and you know, from their kind of everyday life – it sticks with you,” Nims said.

So far, the war has forced more than 5 million Ukrainians from their homes —and left them to make a new life somewhere else. 

That is why Nims says there is a good chance you may encounter one of these displaced families.

“When that happens, and when you do come across a Ukrainian, please offer what you can to help,” Nims said. “You know, the folks I met really asked for nothing.”