United Help Ukraine’s 2015 Summary Letter
Dear supporters and donors of United Help Ukraine,
As a result of your generosity, 2015 proved to be a very productive year! With the start of New Year 2016, we write to provide you an update of our major activities in 2015. First and foremost, we raised $103,001 in 2015, a tremendous accomplishment during these uncertain economic times. In total, from the date we established UHU in June 2014, we have raised a sum of $179,146. We owe UHU’s success to your generosity and dedication of our volunteers.
In 2015, UHU had four major initiatives: distributing medical aid to hospitals and the wounded; providing life-saving medical supplies to Ukrainian warriors; providing humanitarian aid to internally displaced people and the families of Ukrainian defenders; and facilitating community involvement, to include participation in cultural events that raise awareness about Ukraine.
Thanks to our group of dedicated volunteers, our Medical Aid initiative was very effective this year. Below are some of UHU’s major accomplishments in this area:
♦ UHU shipped a 40-foot container with 20 pallets of medical supplies estimated value of $250,000. Medical supplies were donated by Brother’s Brother Foundation and UHU paid $4,600 for shipping and a $2,500 processing fee;
♦ UHU purchased a 3D scanner costing $20,000 that will be delivered to a rehabilitation clinic in Kyiv that treats wounded Ukrainian warriors free of charge;
♦ UHU raised over $5,500 toward the treatment of wounded Ukrainian warriors;
♦ UHU covered shipping costs for over 20 suitcases of medical supplies with people traveling to Ukraine (each suitcase contained 50 lbs of medical supplies with value ranging from $2,000 to $10,000 each; medical supplies were donated by Brother’s Brother Foundation); and
♦ UHU provided constant support to wounded Ukrainian soldiers at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD.
As part of our Medical Aid initiative, we started a “T-shirt drive” to provide socks, undergarments and t-shirts to the wounded at Ukrainian hospitals. We collected over 20 boxes of new items. Later in 2015, after we shipped an entire container of t-shirts to Ukraine, the “T-shirt drive” was converted to a “Socks and Underwear Drive” for the front line defenders. These everyday items are essential to preventing infections and avoiding the spread of disease in crowded hospitals.
Our Defenders Aid initiative during 2015 sent:
♦ Over 300 fully assembled first aid kits, 1,325 packs of QuikClot Z- Folded Gauzes and CELOX (blood-clotting medicine), 370 CATs (Combat Application Tourniquets), 500 Israeli Bandages,” 5 Tasmanian tiger First Responder Backpacks, and a lot of other first aid medicine;
♦ Shipped over 200 pair of boots and protective clothing to Ukrainian defenders with the total cost of over $12,000.
Our Humanitarian Aid initiative was also productive:
♦ Held five large sorting/packing events and many smaller non-official ones; during those events we packaged and shipped over 25,399 lbs (or 11.5 tons) of clothes, medicine, and bed sheets (total since UHU was created is 33,517 lbs);
♦ All these items were packed into 606 boxes (since UHU was established we packed over 838 boxes). Each box can hold enough clothes for 4-6 kids or 2-3 adults. We estimate we were able to help about 2,000 people and provide linens for 1,500 beds in Ukrainian hospitals; and
♦ Shipped aid to over 15 cities and villages in Ukraine and paid $14,516 for shipping (total shipping costs for humanitarian aid initiative since UHU was created is $19,433).
Also we received a donation of two 24-foot trucks filled with new t-shirts and hoodies. United Help Ukraine held 4 sorting and packing events to pack all these donated items, which totaled 468 boxes after packing. The entire container of these t-shirts and hoodies was shipped to Ukraine for free.
Also, as a part of our Humanitarian Aid initiative, we started a drive to collect toys through Amazon.com for Christmas presents to Ukrainian warriors’ children. We received toy donations valued at over $3,000 and they were distributed to 47 kids in Brody and children of Battalion Donbas defenders, and to over 35 kids in an orphanage in Odessa, Ukraine.
United Help Ukraine either hosted, organized or participated in over 35 events, fundraisers, and protests in 2015. Some of the most memorable events are:
♦ Charity Concert by Gerdan to Commemorate the Fallen Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred at the Ukrainian Embassy held on February 20th (approximately $5,300 raised);
♦ Anastasia Prykhodko Concert on March 7, 2015 (approximately $10,000 raised);
♦ Bria: Blessing for Ukraine Charity Concert Aug 21 (approximately $2,500 raised);
♦ Memorial March to Remember Victims of MH17 on July 17;
♦ Peace and Freedom March April 19th ; and
♦ Forum at US Capitol, #SoundTheAlarmForUkraine on September 25.
Events UHU hosted, organized or participated in 2015:
01. 01/17/2015 Malanka Celebration Dance Party at St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral
02. 01/25/2015 Protest “Stop War in Ukraine!” in front of the White House
03. 02/02/2015 Documentary Presentation “Brothers in Arms: Stories from Frontlines of Russian-Ukrainian War”
04. 02/06/2015 Solidarity March for Ukraine
05. 02/07/2015 Sorting/Packing
06. 02/20/2015 Charity Concert to Commemorate the Fallen Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred
07. 03/07/2015 Anastasia Prykhodko in Washington, D.C., March 7, 2015
08. 03/13/2015 UHU debut on Baltimore TV station
09. 03/21/2015 Event: Shevchenko: Prophet of Freedom – Шевченко: ПроРОК Свободи
10. 03/22/2015 32nd Annual Pysanka Workshop and Easter Bazaar
11. 03/26/2015 National Rally In Support of Ukraine
12. 04/06/2015 Pasquetta – Easter Monday event in Baltimore
13. 04/19/2015 Peace and Freedom March
14. 04/25/2015 Sorting/packing, packed 130 boxes
15. 04/26/2015 Movie screening «STRONGER THAN ARMS»
16. 05/02/2015 Ukrainian Embassy Open Doors event
17. 05/09/2015 Lithuanian Open House during Passport DC – European Union Days
18. 06/12/2015 Protest in front of Russian Embassy
19. 06/15/2015 Charity Dinner fundraiser at Centerville United Methodist Church
20. 06/30/2015 Music to impress by young Ukrainian talents
21. 07/17/2015 Memorial March to Remember Victims of MH17
22. 08/21/2015 Bria: Blessing for Ukraine Charity Concert
23. 08/23/2015 Ukrainian Independence Day Bazaar at Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church
24. 08/29/2015 Sorting and packing in two locations
25. 09/13/2015 T-shirt sorting
26. 09/12-13/2015 Baltimore Ukrainian Festival
27. 09/19-20/2015 Washington Ukrainian Festival in Silver Spring, MD
28. 09/25/2015 Forum at US Capitol now #SoundTheAlarmForUkraine
29. 10/10/2015 T-shirt sorting
30. 10/24/2015 PICKET the SERIAL HATER Lisitsa’s performance with BSO
31. 10/31/2015 Insane Inflatables Race volunteering
32. 11/07/2015 Dedication Ceremony of the Holodomor Memorial opening in Washington, DC
33. 11/21-22/2015 Ukrainian Christmas Bazaar at Ukrainian Catholic National Shrine of the Holy Family
34. 12/12-13/2015 Christmas Bazaar at Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church
35. 12/19/2015 Ukrainian School Holiday Bazaar and St. Mykolai Show
