Donor Stories: Giving to Ukraine to Honor Bob Egan's Legacy
In 1993, intrepid American cyclist Bob Egan embarked on a two-week, 1200km trip through Ukraine with his friend Rob McNutt. It was just two years after Ukraine’s independence from Russia in August 1991, and the country was working to emerge from the shadow of Soviet control.
As they rode out of Kyiv, the city's exit still “had a deserted guard gate from the Soviet times when you needed permission to travel within the country,” Rob recalled. “Within ten miles, we were alone on a four-lane highway. Once in a while we’d see a truck or a farm tractor or, more often, a horse-drawn cart. The soil was black and rich. Large fields being worked by women with hand tools...We passed small villages with dirt roads that were mud. The only pavement was the four-lane highway we were on.”
Rob recalls the “stark difference” when they crossed the border between Ukraine and more commercially developed Hungary at the end of the trip. Despite the recession in Ukraine, “People were so generous and so kind,” Rob said. “They didn’t have much, and things were tough for them, but they were open, they were curious, [and] they were generous.” The Ukrainians they met invited them into their homes, providing food, shelter, hospitality, and guidance on their route—while refusing to accept any kind of payment.
Their route took them from Kyiv through the Carpathian Mountains and ended in Budapest. Though they were fed well on the journey, imported products, like fresh fruits, were scarce. In one town, Bob and Rob tried to buy oranges from a Ukrainian woman selling them in a market square, but she refused. She told them she was keeping them for the locals so they wouldn’t miss the chance to enjoy the luxury. Her community ethos still impressed Rob as he recalled the story more than 30 years later.
Bob's trip to Ukraine was one of many adventures he took with friends around the world before he passed away in 2021. “He really was fascinated by the country,” his brother Rich recalls. “Meeting the people would have been one of the highlights for him, and why he did all [these trips].” Bob’s brothers Joe and Rich generously donated to Heal Ukraine Trauma in his memory, honoring Bob’s interest in people and places around the world. A few years after his trip, in 1996, he hosted the Ukrainian women’s cycling team, their trainer, and manager at his home in Boise during their visit for an Olympic practice race.
Bob also volunteered at the Olympics and Special Olympics, became a volunteer deputy sheriff in his home county, and sought adventurous experiences and connection throughout his life by biking, backpacking, and bagging mountain peaks with friends old and new. He stayed close with many classmates from Harvard Business School, including HUT co-founder Colin Greenstreet.
“Bike with friends, stop for snacks,” was one of Bob’s mottos, which was recalled fondly by friends and family alike. “Meeting Bob was a life-changing experience,” his friend Mark Pearson said. “So many things I would never have done...if Bob hadn’t come up with ideas and planned all the logistics.”
Rob was also grateful for Bob’s experienced preparation for their trip to Ukraine; Bob’s knowledge of its recent history and the impact of Soviet domination were topics of conversation along their ride. Rob shared a poignant memory from Zviahel, where a family who took them in shared photos of the three children they lost to radiation poisoning from the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
While Ukraine’s economy grew dramatically in the 2000s, the current war instigated by Russia has again interrupted the country’s growth and created new traumas. Through the Egan family’s support, and the legacy of Bob’s stout curiosity and kindness, Ukrainian veterans and families can begin to heal and rebuild. It is paying forward the generous Ukrainian hospitality on Bob’s trip to provide a safe, healthy country for generations to come.
All photos from Bob’s 1993 trip & the 1996 cycling team visit, courtesy of Joe and Felicia Egan.