A Message from Chancellor Wesley R. Payne IV: How You Can Support Ukrainian Relief Efforts

Chancellor Wesley R. Payne IV issued the following statement in support of efforts to provide relief to the people of Ukraine:

“The Philadelphia Bar Association was founded on the ideas of promoting equal justice for all and respect for the rule of law" Payne said. "The situation currently facing the people of Ukraine runs completely counter to both of these ideals and is a violation of universal human rights. Our hearts go out to all of the country’s people and their families as they face an historic and life-threatening crisis.

“One of the best ways to respond in tragic circumstances is by finding ways to do good. The Bar Association has compiled a comprehensive resource list – which you can see below – of local, national and international organizations spearheading relief efforts in Ukraine and for its people. I encourage all of our members to look at the list and think about how you as an individual can show your support. In addition, the Philadelphia Bar Association as an organization stands ready to assist with relief efforts in any way that we can.”

RESOURCES:

Nationalities Service Center:

• USA for UNHCR: UNHCR is providing direct resources and linkages to other on-the-ground supports to Ukrainians fleeing to neighboring countries.

Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center – Philadelphia

• Donate to vetted donation sources
• Stay up to date on upcoming rallies in the area
• CORA is holding a donation drive for the Ukrainian Education and Cultural Center through March 15. Donations of new adult and children's coats, clothing and underwear, sleeping bags, protein bars and dry food, towels, knee pads, hygiene products, adult diapers, baby feeding bottles, first aid kits and bandages can be dropped off at CORA's lobby 8540 Verree Rd., Philadelphia, PA. You can also send packages purchased online marked "UNWLA Ukraine Donation" to the Center's address: Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center, 700 N Cedar Rd., Jenkintown, PA 19046

United Ukrainian American Relief Committee, Inc.

• You can be a part of UUARC's mission to enhance the quality of life of Ukrainian communities and individuals throughout the world. Every gift is tax-deductible, and the donor receives an acknowledgement for the donation.

HIAS PA: Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is available to Ukrainians who have been in the U.S. continuously since before March 1, 2022. People who might be eligible for this relief and are also low-income Pennsylvanians may call the HIAS PA intake line at (215) 832-0900 for help.

Sourced from The Philadelphia Inquirer:

• Project HOPE: Currently, Project HOPE is aiding those in Ukraine by mobilizing its emergency teams and “sending medical supplies and standing by to provide health screening and care for refugees.” Donate on the group’s website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• GlobalGiving: “GlobalGiving’s local partners in Ukraine are bringing relief to displaced families and people in high-risk areas.” According to the group, your donation will support refugees with food, shelter, and clean water, as well as providing health and psychological support. Donate to the group’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund online. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• UNICEF USA: More than 510,000 children have been affected by the conflict so far, and the UNICEF emergency response is working to address their needs by preparing health, hygiene, and emergency education supplies, as well as distributing safe water to affected areas, providing children with psychosocial care, and helping kids separated from their families. Now, UNICEF is trying to raise $66.4 million to be able to continue their programs and offer immunization, health care, child protection, and cash assistance. Donate on the UNICEF website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Catholic Relief Services: Catholic Relief Services has partners across Ukraine and is currently providing shelter, food, hygiene supplies, fuel, transportation to safe areas, and counseling support. Donate through PayPal on the group’s website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• International Medical Corps: International Medical Corps helped Ukrainians during conflict in 1999-2000 by delivering medicine and training more than 500 local doctors and medical staff. As the current crisis develops, the International Medical Corps has added mental health counseling to the services available for the community. Donate on the group’s website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• United Help Ukraine: United Help Ukraine receives and distributes food donations and medical supplies to people in Ukraine. The group’s current priorities: aiding Ukrainian soldiers and their families, helping displaced people from Crimea and Eastern Ukraine, and raising awareness of the current situation. Donate through PayPal, or by check payable to United Help Ukraine, Box 83426, Gaithersburg, MD. 20883. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Revived Soldiers Ukraine: This group buys medication and medical supplies, helps support army hospitals, and works to improve the living standards for soldiers and their families. Donate directly through the group’s website, through PayPal or Patreon, or make it your preferred Amazon nonprofit, which donates 0.5% of the amount of your Amazon purchases to the group. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Sunflower of Peace: Sunflower for Peace offers medical assistance to Ukrainian orphans, people displaced by war, and people heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. In February 2022, the group started asking for donations to prepare first aid medical tactical backpacks for paramedics and doctors on the front lines. These kinds of backpacks — usually handled by Marines, special military forces, and military groups — are used to save lives in areas without access to hospitals or emergency care. Donate on Facebook. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• The Kyiv Independent: The Kyiv Independent is an independent media outlet reporting in English. The organization has been covering the Russia-Ukraine conflict, doing fact checking, and reporting on human rights. Since the group is not affiliated with any government and reports in English, it is becoming an important window into what is happening in Ukraine right now. Since its creation in 2021, the Kyiv Independent has been running mainly on donations. Donate through GoFundMe or Patreon.
• The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews: This group runs an emergency program with $1 million in funding that helps the approximately 300,000 Jewish people in Ukraine. The fellowship has staff and volunteers on the ground in Ukraine, and funds the country’s Jewish organizations to give Ukrainian Jews the chance to move to Israel. Funds are also used to provide the Ukrainian Jewish community with food, medicine, and heat. Donate online. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Voices of Children: Voices of Children provide psychological and psychosocial support to children affected by war. Donations help finance art therapy and mobile psychologists, and help families in need. Donate directly on its website.
• Cooperative for American Remittances to Europe (CARE): In Ukraine, the group is working on providing girls, women, and elderly people with water, food, and hygiene kits. It currently has a Ukraine Crisis Fund specially focused on continuing work in the country, and providing psychological support, recovery, and cash assistance. Donate using a credit card or through PayPal on the website.
• International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC): This group has been supporting people in Ukraine for almost a decade and as the crisis continues, it is adding to comfort kits for individuals and families in need. Donate to the ICRC on its website.
• American Red Cross: In Ukraine, the American Red Cross is currently helping U.S. military people and families deployed in the region. So far, it has sent 30 staff members to Europe to help U.S. military members in Ukraine connect with their families back home, and is delivering hygiene items and resources to service members and U.S. State Department staff abroad. It cannot help Ukraine with blood directly because it cannot be sent without special request from the U.S Department of State, the United Nation, or other affected Red Cross networks. Donate on its website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• United Ukrainian American Relief Committee (UUARC): This group is currently working in coordination with the Ukrainian Embassy to arrange medical supplies, food, offering shelter, and taking care of injured people and refugees. Donate on its website or send a check to the United Ukrainian American Relief Committee, Inc. 1206 Cottman Ave., Philadelphia, PA. 19111. For medical donations, call 215-728-1630. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC): The JDC is preparing to send psychosocial support to Ukraine as mass displacements increase, as well as delivering food packages, and providing online support. Donate on its website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Doctors Without Borders: Doctors without Borders has been in Ukraine for almost a decade, providing training and emergency medicine, helping with HIV and tuberculosis care, chronic disease management, and more. Due to increasing tensions, the group has halted some programs. Currently, the group is preparing medical kits, has teams in Belarus and Russia, and is in the process of expanding to other countries in the region to provide humanitarian assistance to refugees. Donate with credit and debit card, or PayPal, on its website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Samaritan’s Purse: Prior to the escalation of the current conflict, the group was already working with more than 3,000 ministry partners in Ukraine. Now, Samaritan’s Purse is providing food, water, shelter, and medicine, as well as assisting refugees in Poland and Romania. Donate through their website. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• World Central Kitchen: World Central Kitchen was created by a Spanish-American chef José Andrés and his wife, Patricia, after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. On February 24, Chef Andrés arrived in Poland to help refugees arriving from Ukraine. World Center Kitchen is partnering with Caritas nuns to give hot meals and supplies to people on the Rava-Ruska border. Donate through their website. They accept credit cards, bank transfers, cryptocurrency, stocks, or PayPal. Your donation is tax-deductible.
• Mercy Corps: As the humanitarian crisis worsens, this group is supporting local organizations and providing cash assistance. Donate through its website. Your donation is tax-deductible.

Sourced from Philly Voice:

• Razom for Ukraine: While the nonprofit is running its own fundraiser to support relief efforts in Ukraine, it also has a host of resources on its social media accounts, including direct links to support the Ukrainian army. Donations can be made on Razom for Ukraine's website or via PayPal.

Sourced from NBC10 Philadelphia:

• American Jewish Committee of Philadelphia / South Jersey: Join AJC in calling on Congress to work with the administration to impose crippling sanctions on Russia.
• Ukrainian National Women's League of America: The UNWLA is asking all its members and the public to join their efforts for humanitarian aid being directed at civilians inside Ukraine who have been displaced or injured, as well as to four military hospitals (Kyiv, Dnipro, Lviv and Zhytomyr) caring for injured soldiers.

Sourced from KYW:

• New World Association: Currently, the organization is working to produce a plan to collect clothes and medical supplies that can be sent overseas to help refugees.