The 76-year-old former SCTV star Dave Thomas recently spoke to The Globe and Mail about his trip to Ukraine.Dave Thomas/The Canadian Press
Comedian Dave Thomas recently returned from a 10-day trip to Ukraine to raise awareness for the Ukrainian Freedom Fund, a charity that supplies non-lethal equipment and training to Ukrainians. The 76-year-old former SCTV star recently spoke to The Globe and Mail by video conference from Los Angeles.
How does one get to Kyiv in the middle of a war?
You can’t fly to Ukraine. I took a Turkish Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Istanbul, which took 14 hours. And then I took a connecting flight to Chisinau, Moldova, south of Ukraine. From there was an eight-hour ride with an army security official through Ukraine. It was a pretty hairy ride.
Were you in danger?
Dave Thomas poses with a flag on his goodwill trip to Ukraine.The Globe and Mail
We were dodging automobile debris on the road, from previous drone strikes. We had to travel at night because the strikes were during the day. I later met a communications officer who said his personal car was attacked when he was off duty. They were stalking him because he was a valuable piece in the military command chain. The Russians use social media and all sorts of tracking methods. It’s a different kind of war going on.
What was Kyiv like?
We got there in the morning. It looked like a normal European city − business as usual. People sat in cafes drinking lattes. Students were lined up outside the university. During the day, it was difficult for me to imagine there was a war going on. But at night, that’s when you know. Explosions rocked my hotel.
Do you meet any Canadians over there?
I did, a retired Canadian general acting as an adviser. There are more than a million Ukrainians in Canada. This general felt he was doing the right thing by them. There’s a sense of obligation to them, as taxpaying citizens.
You’re a comedian with no Ukrainian heritage in your background. What about your own sense of responsibility that led your there?
I’m 76 years old. I feel I have to do something with my life before I die that has some value. I’ve made some people laugh. I guess that’s great. But I felt I should do something more.
Former SCTV star Dave Thomas goes to Ukraine: ‘Most of my career is behind me, so why don’t I go over there and see what I can do?’
What do you think you accomplished?
I learned a lot about people. Maybe there will be an increase in donations in Canada, which would be great. They’re giving medical supplies and teaching field triage. They have evacuation teams that go behind enemy lines to rescue Ukrainian people who are trapped there, including women and children.
Did you accompany those teams?
I did. The Russians were shooting at us.
On SCTV, you portrayed Bob Hope, famous for entertaining troops abroad. I wonder if he ever got shot at.
I don’t know. But drones are the weapons of choice now. Ukrainian soldiers told me how difficult they are to shoot down. They’re almost like those model airplanes hobbyists fly. I saw one Russian drone hanging in a bar. It doesn’t look threatening at all, and yet they carry ordnance.
Did you talk to wounded soldiers?
Yes. The communications officer I mentioned lost his legs. He said to me, ‘They blew up the wrong half of me.’ He’s still good from the legs up. ‘I’m still fighting,’ he said.
What about the civilians you spoke with?
I talked to a woman who was being evacuated from the south, near Odessa. Her husband was packing the car, and a Russian sniper shot him in the head. She saw it happen from the window of her house. She fled with her children on her own. Nobody should have to witness that.
Did you speak with people about President Trump and U.S. support?
They’re very careful not to say anything negative about the United States. There’s a Ukrainian phrase that translates to, ‘Everything will be fine.’ There’s a song that everybody knows that talks to this spirit of resilience. I saw that resilience myself.
In what form?
I heard about drone strikes on a mall in Kyiv. It happened around midnight. When I went to the mall the next morning, the store owners had replaced the glass that had been destroyed by the blast. Cardboard replaced the walls, and they were open for business as usual. I have to admit, I was mad at myself for being disappointed, because I brought my video crew to shoot the devastation and it was already under repair. They’re dedicated to making things appear normal.
You had plans to visit comedy clubs. Did you?
Yes. I spoke with stand-ups. I wanted to know what Ukrainians were laughing at. What I found was that it wasn’t Trump or Putin or political jokes. It’s dating, lifestyle stuff. They want to laugh at normal things. The war is off topic. Nobody thinks the war is funny − there’s nothing funny about it.
This interview has been condensed and edited.
