A YEAR SUPPORTING UKRAINIANS
THE CIFERS FOUNDATION
FEBRUARY 2022 - FEBRUARY 2023
USA - UKRAINE
"The war in Ukraine became a great tragedy of the 21st century. It broke the lives of millions of Ukrainians, took away their health and loved ones, and destroyed families, homes, and plans for the future. We share the pain of the Ukrainian people, and in order to support Ukraine in a difficult time, in March 2022, we founded THE CIFERS FOUNDATION.Today we report on the first year of our work with deep gratitude to partners who supported our charitable initiatives. We sincerely thank everyone who wrote to us, trusted us, waited, understood, and did not lose hope. Thank you for your patience and warm feedback about our Foundation. We are sure that every good deed makes the day brighter and the world healthier. Therefore, we continue to help Ukraine with firm faith in the victory of Light, Good, and Love!" - Sincerely, Luther and Anastasia Cifers.
ASSISTING UKRAINIAN FAMILIES
3 shelters for refugees were organized in Warsaw (Poland) and Farmville (Virginia, USA). The first shelters for Ukrainian migrants were organized in March 2022 in Warsaw. In October, the first shelter in Farmville, Virginia, received the refugees. Mothers with children, senior citizens, and even animals received temporary shelter and comprehensive assistance in shelters.
350 families received financial support from $100 to $5,000. During 2022, we provided financial support to Ukrainian families with children who lost their family members, homes, jobs, or were forced to relocate due to Russian hostilities and occupation. The program was implemented in cooperation with the "Dream" Foundation.
Almost 1,000 human stories of Ukrainian families have been collected by the foundation's volunteers. An information base of Ukrainian families in need of urgent assistance has been created. For the most part, these are large families from the East of Ukraine. To support the affected families, a program has been launched to find American families who take a Ukrainian family under their patronage for long-term care.
Personal correspondence from families:
"You are doing incredible things! You see, it's just a miracle!"
"Thank you for the hope!"
"Many were filled in, but you were the first to respond, and gave hope for help!"
"I received funds and an account. Sincere thanks to you and all good people involved in good deeds!"
"Thank you very much, I received the money. Very timely and unexpected before the New Year. You are doing a great job at this difficult time."
ASSISTING UKRAINIAN DEFENDERS
In the first months of the war, the Cifers Foundation provided active assistance to the Ukrainian military and members of the territorial defense. Military units of the Ukrainian army A5617, A7321, A3449, A7296, the territorial defenses of the cities of Irpen, Berezan, Sofiyivska Borschahivka, Voznesensk, Mykolaiv, Kryvyi Rih, as well as a marine infantry battalion and the Kastus Kalinovsky Regiment were supported. The defenders of Ukraine received mainly personal protective equipment - bulletproof vests, helmets, tactical gloves, knee pads, and suits, but also drones, thermal imagers, walkie-talkies, night vision devices, camera cases, and power banks for personal use.
160 medical trauma kits were handed over and delivered to the war zone in association with The Fay Group, QBE LLC, My Medic. Thanks to this help, the lives of the soldiers of the "Peacemaker" Battalion, the "HOSPITALI" Medical Battalion, the 80th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade, the 14th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade, the Izmail Border Detachment, the Separate Special Unit of the National Police "SOFIA" were saved ", of the separate special unit of the National Guard "BARS", volunteer unit No. 34 "K-8", the 1st separate battalion of territorial defense in Avdiivka, the border detachment of the Eastern regional administration.
"It was an honor to work with this team to ensure the delivery of humanitarian goods. Together, we are doing an important thing for the courageous people of Ukraine and for the free world," - Natalya Deliyeva, head of the Association of Women of Ukraine "Diya", Odesa
"We are fighting for general freedom, truth and independence. Every support is another step towards victory," - Soldiers of the Regiment named after Kastusya Kalinovskyi.
SUPPORT OF UKRAINIAN EDUCATION, CULTURE, YOUTH
Educational book for preschoolers was widely issued in Europe. The publishing house "Samit-Knyga" printed a Ukrainian-language textbook with a circulation of 2,000 copies for preschoolers who were forced to leave Ukraine to escape the war. The Cifers Foundation financed the printing of the book so that Ukrainian children could learn in their native language and preserve Ukrainian culture, even abroad. Presentations of Book took place in Warsaw and Krakow. Part of the print was given to Ukrainian refugees in Moldova.
Exhibition of children's drawings "My Ukraine" was placed. The foundation collected more than 300 children's drawings for the organization of the charity exhibition "My Ukraine". Works have been shown at the Longwood Center for the Visual Arts and at the Washington Dulles Airport. Funds from the sale of drawings are directed to support Ukrainian refugees and families in Ukraine.
Collection of poetry "The Power of the Word" was issued. With the support of the Cifers Foundation, a collection of works by the participants of the regional competition among poets of the Kyiv region was published in the "SUMMIT BOOK" publishing house. The book is illustrated with children's drawings from the exhibition of the "My Ukraine" Foundation.
Active Ukrainian Youth were supported. The project "Youth Banks of Initiatives", which is implemented by the charitable organization "National Network for the Local Philanthropy Development", is supported on an ongoing basis. With the support of the foundation, 15 grants were provided for humanitarian initiatives of youth in different regions of Ukraine during the year for peacebuilding and community mobilization.
Ivan Yushchenko became MMA world champion. Thanks to the support of the Foundation, Ivan Yushchenko, an 18-year-old resident of the village of Kotsyubynske in the Kyiv region, was able to find refuge with his family in Warsaw in the early days of the war and later participate in MMA events, recently becoming the MMA world champion in the weight category of 77.1 kg among youth. The 2022 MMA World Mixed Martial Arts Championship was held in the capital of Serbia, Belgrade. More than 500 athletes from 63 countries of the world took part in the competition.
"Samit-Knyga publishing house sincerely thanks the Cifers American-Ukrainian family charitable foundation for friendship and support of the book project," - Ivan Stepurin, director of the publishing house "Samit-knyga", Kyiv
"Thank you for the nice gift! Little Ukrainians in Moldova should learn their native language!" - Svitlana Melnychuk, volunteer, Kyiv
OUR PARTNERS: National network for the development of local philanthropy (Ukraine), Ukraine Rotary Club "Kyiv International" (Ukraine), publishing house “Summit Book”, "Dream" Fund (Ukraine), logistics center MARLOG (Ukraine), Between the Walls (Ukraine), LCVA (USA), Dallas Airport Washington, The Fay Group (USA), QBE LLC (USA), My Medic (USA).