Ukraine
In response to the deepening humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, The Rotary Foundation has created an official channel for donors around the world to contribute funds to support the relief efforts underway by Rotary districts and has designated its Disaster Response Fund as the main avenue for contributions.
To this end, The Rotary Foundation has approved:
- Contributions to the Rotary International Disaster Relief Fund in support of Ukraine can be made here.
- Although the Disaster Response Fund will be the main avenue for Rotary Foundation support, Rotary and Rotaract clubs are also encouraged to create their own responses to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
In addition to support provided through the Disaster Response Fund, the Foundation is coordinating with partners and regional leaders, exploring effective solutions to the increased humanitarian needs.
- We are in contact with the United Nations High Commission on Refugees – USA to prepare for and respond to the needs of those being displaced in Ukraine and to neighboring countries.
- ShelterBox, our project partner for disaster response, is in communication with Rotary members in Eastern Europe to explore how it may offer support with temporary transitional housing and other essential supplies.
- The Rotary Action Group for Refugees, Forced Displacement, and Migration is also mobilizing its resources to assist in this crisis.
More than 2 million people have fled Ukraine and are in dire need of emergency aid. The United Nations estimates that number could grow to as many as 5 million people displaced. Rotary clubs in Europe and around the world have stepped up their relief work, some working on the ground to help displaced families.
We will continue to monitor the situation in Ukraine and neighboring countries. Visit My Rotary and follow Rotary on social media to stay updated on how clubs can get involved and what actions Rotary members have taken and the impact it has had for people in the region.
For all other questions and to obtain more information, please contact the Rotary Support Center at rotarysupportcenter@rotary.org.
Club-Level Efforts Within District 7080KITCHENER CONESTOGA ROTARY CLUB’S RELIEF TO UKRAINE
January 2024 Update:
Kitchener Conestoga Rotary Club (KCRC) has always had a passion for international work and saw the need. Immediately after the start of the war, a request was made as to whether anyone in the club had direct connections in Ukraine. One member, Dieter Kays, had a friend who had been a missionary in Ukraine for some 15 years and, even though he was now retired living in Vancouver, continued to have strong relationships in Ukraine. The club, through its International Aid Fund, asked Dieter to become the champion for this effort and negotiate a contract with Rev. Roland Syens identifying the need and the parameters around how the money raised would be used. The call went out to the members to contribute as they had the ability. Dieter and Roland approached their Lutheran contacts. Within 2 weeks KCRC had raised more than $50,000, which has now grown to $292,000, over half coming from our club members. All of this goes directly to assist vulnerable people survive during this difficult time.
Roland has a team of pastors working together to support families in Odessa, Nikolaev and Dnipro. All these locations have seen heavy fighting including regular nightly Russian drone attacks which have destroyed infrastructure such as electrical grids, heating gas facilities, and municipal water systems. This has created great hardship for Ukrainians especially over the winter months and displaced thousands of residents. Our aid has been used to provide food , water, and medicine for people in destroyed communities. The Alpha & Omega Youth Center in Dnipro, with the help of our funding, has been made into a shelter for the homeless and a distribution hub for food, medicine, and water to the villages on the front line. Our funds have also been used for the transportation of refugees within Ukraine and to Poland and Germany, as well as distributing fuel for heating homes. After the breaking of the dam which left hundreds of thousands destitute, we funded mini-water purification systems, as well personal protection gear (helmets, bullet proof vests) for volunteers that were going into war zones to deliver supplies to people in need.
Bill Carter, a member KCRC club for 50 years and treasurer of our International Aid Fund, indicated recently that the Ukrainian relief effort “is the most significant international project that our club has ever undertaken.” As we are now into the second winter of this war, the need continues to become even more significant. International support from several mainstream sources, threatens to become weaker. Yet the need for relief efforts on behalf Ukraine continues to grow. We are so grateful that our members and others in the community continue to dig deep to provide for the basic necessities of life for the people of Ukraine. We believe that providing help in this way confirms that we can live the values of Rotary. We also continue to hope and pray that this war will soon be over. That said, we would welcome other Rotarians and clubs to support our Ukraine Relief Fund. Contact Dieter Kays at drkays25@gmail.com or donate directly to DonateToIAF@kcrotary.ca. or through CanadaHelps: Donate Now - Kitchener-Conestoga Rotary Club - International Aid Fund (canadahelps.org).
Further ways to Contribute:
ShelterBox
Thousands of people urgently need your help.
Your support could provide lifesaving aid for families affected by the Ukraine crisis. Any additional money raised will help ShelterBox provide emergency shelter in countries like Yemen, Syria and the Philippines.
Donations: https://bit.ly/3IEPzvL
Red Cross
