Who We Are

World Aid Runners (W.A.R.) is a U.S. registered nonprofit humanitarian organization dedicated to delivering direct aid to civilians affected by war in Ukraine, particularly those living in frontline and high-risk regions often referred to as the “red zones.”

Founded by American volunteers with firsthand experience on the ground in Ukraine, W.A.R. was built around a simple belief: people facing war and displacement deserve fast, direct, and compassionate humanitarian support.

The organization’s leadership includes William J. Waggonner, a retired U.S. Marine and attorney based in Santa Fe, New Mexico; Benjamin G. Dusing, a former federal prosecutor and attorney from the Cincinnati area with Russian-language proficiency; and John W. Gardner, who serves as Field Coordinator and oversees frontline logistics and humanitarian operations alongside Dusing in Ukraine.

Dusing and Waggonner first met in the weeks following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine while volunteering at the Medyka border crossing in Poland, where they assisted refugees fleeing the war. United by a shared commitment to the Ukrainian people and the urgent humanitarian crisis unfolding around them, they continued returning to the region to support relief efforts directly.

Since 2022, members of W.A.R. have participated in multiple humanitarian missions across Ukraine, including:

  • refugee assistance operations at the Polish border

  • humanitarian aid deliveries to liberated territories in the Kharkiv region

  • support missions in frontline “hot zones” in eastern Ukraine

  • medical and civilian evacuation assistance

  • emergency humanitarian operations in Kherson and surrounding southern regions

Over time, Kherson became a major focus of the organization’s work. In September 2023, W.A.R. established what is believed to be the first permanent operational presence in Kherson by a non-local humanitarian organization, maintaining both office space and ongoing field operations in the city.

Today, World Aid Runners operates with a combination of international volunteers, local Ukrainian partners, and frontline support personnel who work together to deliver humanitarian assistance where it is needed most. The organization maintains humanitarian vehicles capable of transporting both aid supplies and non-ambulatory civilians during evacuation efforts.

W.A.R. was formally established in late 2022 to support and expand these operations, including managing humanitarian assets and facilitating tax-deductible donations from supporters who want to directly assist civilians impacted by the war.

While the organization began in response to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, its long-term mission is broader: to provide direct, agile humanitarian aid in conflict zones and underserved crisis areas wherever urgent help is needed.