October 31st, 2024
65,464 people evacuated from danger to date
134 people evacuated from danger this week
37 trips into deoccupied and frontline territories this week
Our volunteer teams in Ukraine work independently of one another; yet, every week, there are some overarching themes to their efforts. Major events on the field of battle and changes in the macro environment lead multiple teams to focus on the same set of problems, each solving them in their own unique way. Our US operations team, focused mainly on supporting the Ukrainian teams’ efforts, also facilitates connections among the teams to help them share ideas and best practices.
Last week, a gruesome attack on Dnipro that damaged a hospital, an elementary school, and multiple residential buildings, mobilized our teams in the area. Inna’s volunteers set up mobile support stations near the attack site, while Kirill and his team brought additional resources to help out survivors in the aftermath of the attack.
Operations in the Kharkiv Region have also been united by a single purpose. Volunteers there have been desperately attempting to supply civilians East of the Oskil river, as Russians attacked all available river crossings.
We are always mindful of the tragedy underlying the need for these relief efforts. At the same time, we feel deep gratitude to our donors for enabling us to support such an adaptable network, able to respond rapidly and creatively to new challenges.
Stories
Firewood Deliveries Begin
All three teams who planned firewood deliveries together have started supplying residents with fuel this week. Thanks to your generosity and the teams’ meticulous planning, we will be able to finally hit the timeline we missed in the previous two years, and will deliver most of the firewood before the onset of winter in December. We are proud of this massive project, which appears simple on the surface, but involves minute planning on a large scale, making the final fuel distribution seem like a near-miraculous feat.
As Ukrainians heroically defend Kup’yans’k, surrounding villages have filled up with refugees, who are hoping to wait out the winter close to home. Inna’s volunteers started firewood deliveries in Shevchenkove, only 20 miles West of Kup’yans’k, where they identified a large group of high-need families. 25 people received 40 tons of firewood this week. The deliveries will continue bringing in additional one to two truckloads every week.
Kup’yans’k Bread Deliveries
Since the early months of the war, Inna’s team has been delivering bread to many frontline cities in Ukraine. In the last two weeks, deliveries to Kup’yans’k have become much harder. Kup’yans’k sits on the East bank of Oskil, accessible only via a few pontoon bridges, which are constantly subject to Russia’s bombings. As a result, bread factories now refuse to make deliveries to Kup’yans’k, fearing the loss of their vehicles. Inna’s team has taken it upon themselves to restore the supply chain for Kup’yans’k, since the many residents left behind need bread to survive.
Families Reach out to Us Directly
Our US operations team provides an ongoing trickle of support to individuals and families who reach out to us directly, usually sending them a one-time aid package containing groceries and hygiene items. This aid is a drop in the ocean, but many Ukrainians find themselves in extraordinarily difficult circumstances because of the war and look for help wherever they can get it.
Many of these families are living in villages where there is no work, prices have skyrocketed because of the war, and schools and kindergartens are closed because of the danger to children from drone attacks. These villagers struggle daily with the hidden costs of war — poverty, stress, and the higher incidence of diseases and death induced by these.
Last week, a mother of three whom we had recently approved for an aid package, wrote to say that her two-month old son, suffering from a heart condition, had just died in the ICU. We could only offer compassion and condolences. On the other hand, most of these aid recipients are extremely grateful. Beyond the modest aid offered by the package, they are encouraged and consoled by their personal contact with us. Somebody answered their request; somewhere on the other side of the world there is a network of people who still care about what happens to Ukrainians.
Help in Occupied Territories
120 families received aid in frontline towns under Russian occupation. These brave, altruistic efforts are particularly dangerous, so our descriptions of this aid is necessarily vague. However, we are extremely proud that, through a complex network of connections, we are able to assist the mostly elderly Ukrainians stranded in Russian-controlled territories.
Team Summaries
Alina’s Team – Dobra sprava (Good Deeds)
16 trips, 115 people evacuated from the Velyka Vasylkivska area.
Inna’s Team – Krok z nadiyeyu (Step with Hope)
23.05 tons distributed in 32 cities across 5 regions in Ukraine.
Helped reached 8,600 people, plus 6,600 people received bread.
Helped delivered to 5 frontline towns in Donbas, including Kostyantynivka, Druzhkiva, and Kramatorsk, as well Kup’yans’k, Izyum, Balakliya, and Shevchenkovo in frontline areas of the Kharkiv Region.
Kherson work:
Disinfected 50 buildings (record to date).
12 equipment management tasks completed.
In addition to regular aid distributions in Nikopol, distributed 3 tons of water.
Set up a makeshift station to assist the victims of Dnipro bombing late last week.
Evacuated 1 person from Druzhkivka.
Brought in plastic to cover up windows in Druzhkivka.
Oleksandr D’s Volunteer Networks
Оleksandr S (Boyarka): report for 2 weeks. Received 500 kg of clothes, 1 ton of groceries, 200 packs of diapers, and backpacks from the NGO Christian Road of Life and delivered this aid to the village of Khmelivka, border Sumy Region. Distributed 165 packages of diapers in Krasnopillya and surrounding Sumy Region villages. Delivered 1,100 kg of food and clothing for internally displaced people (IDP) in the city of Yahotyn (Kyiv Region).
Vladyslav K (Mykolaiv): delivered 35 tons of drinking water to Mykolaiv and 7 tons to Kherson.
Sandra S (Odesa): kitchen fed more than 800 people.
WeCare Centers (Lviv): distributed 2,700 kg of pasta in Uman, Khmelnytskyi, Kamin-Kashyrskyi, Kamianka, Rivne, Lutsk, Korosten’, Hostomel, and Pereyaslav.
Vitaliy Z (Kharkiv): delivered 4 tons of humanitarian kits, clothes, medicine, and animal feed to Molotaranivka (Donetsk Region). Suggested evacuation, but people refuse because they can’t afford to rent housing. Delivered 2 tons of aid to Kostyantynivka.
Oleksandr Z (Lutsk): provided therapeutic interventions and aid for IDP children and adults, children with disabilities, children from large families and from military families. Held 3 art therapy sessions, working with a total of 90 children. Visited a museum with 64 IDPs and took 56 IDP students and their families to the theater. Provided 42 people with orthopedic shoes, wheelchairs, orthotics and glasses. Helped 240 IDPs and 60 children and young adult students with bread and other food. Provided 71 physical therapy and wellness sessions for IDPs and others suffering from the stress of war. Also conducted 18 preventative children’s health procedures.
Kseniia’s Team – Livyy bereh (Left Bank)
Darya, based in Kharkiv, delivered 78 packages to Kut’kivka, Kasyanivka, Stetsivka, Vodyane, and Kindrashivka.
Attempted to evacuate people from Borova, but failed because the river crossing was destroyed.
Karina’s Team – My ryatuyemo Ukrayinu (We Save Ukraine)
158 people in the shelter.
Tetiana’s Team — Dopomoha poruch (Help Is Near)
Delivered 150 aid packages to Krutoyarivka, on the border of Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk Regions.
Delivered 50 aid packages to Kramatorsk, Donetsk Region.
Timur’s Team — Komanda Teymura Alyeva (Timur Alyev’s Team)
Evacuated 18 people from the Kup’yans’k and Kivsharivka areas.
Distributed 414 aid packages in Saltivka and Cherkasski Tyshky.
Pavel and Olena’s Teams — Dotyk sertsya (Touch of Heart) & Svitanok mriy (Dawn of Dreams)
Delivered 110 packages and 1.5 tons of water to Novohryhorivka.
Provided aid to 396 IDP families living in a dormitory in Mykolaiv.
Continue to conduct classes for kids in Mykolaiv twice a week.
Pomahaem Foundation (We Help Foundation)
Helped victims of the Dnipro bombing last week. Included some of the families in the cash-aid programs sponsored by other organizations.
346 packages delivered to Kherson and Marhanets’.
16 tons of water delivered to Nikopol.
4 trips to frontline regions near Pokrovsk and Zaporizhzhia, vetting 231 people for cash aid sponsored by GFFO and Mercy Corps.
Marina’s Team — Daruy dobro Ukrayina (Give Good Ukraine)
Handed out over 150 grocery sets for people who suffered as a result of the war and currently live in the territory of the Piatyhatky community.
Dina’s Team — Vilʹni lyudy, vilʹna krayina (Free People, Free Country)
460 packages distributed in Kremenchuk, Poltava, Kanev, and Krasnokutsk; another 100 packages mailed from Dnipro.
Bohdan’s Team — Vse robymo sami (We Do Everything Ourselves)
43 families received food and hygiene kits in Zhytomyr.
In the club for children with disabilities, children had psychological relief sessions and art classes, and learned how to make fruit smoothies.
Alena’s Team – Diva (Virgo)
Katya and Liza helped 12 wounded in Odesa hospitals with contusion medicines and miscellaneous medical needs.
Distributed 70 food packages, 1.5 tons of clothing and footwear in Pavlo-Mar’yanivka. All 250 residents also received bread, sweet buns, and yogurts.
Distributed 350 loaves of bread and buns in Vasylivka, Yevhenivka, and Novopavlivka.
How to Help
Donate — The money goes directly to teams providing aid on the ground, who respond dynamically to the most urgent needs.
Fundraise — Organize fundraisers at your school, work, place of worship, with friends and family, etc.
Spread the word — Share our website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or LinkedIn with your friends, family, and colleagues.
Fill out this form if you’re interested in volunteering with us, and we’ll let you know when opportunities come up.
Download and print our flyer. Ask your local coffee shop if you can add it to the bulletin, or use it as part of your fundraiser.