As the war between Russia and Ukraine is becoming more severe, some Pace students have gathered supplies to aid the citizens of Ukraine.
The war between Russia and Ukraine began on Feb. 24, 2022, and the warfare has grown more brutal over time. Russia is attacking the region of Kyiv and civilians after retreating from the capital, using relentless tactics to try to seize Ukraine. As of April 17 at least 2,022 children have been killed in the Russian invasion. On Easter Sunday, there was a call for the end of the war in Ukraine by Pope Francis. Pope Francis said, “May there be peace for war-torn Ukraine, so sorely tried by the violence and destruction of this cruel and senseless war into which it was dragged.” Ukrainian forces are continuing to be resilient and fight against the Russian attacks, especially in cities like Mariupol, where citizens are taking shelter in an iron and steel plant. As of April 7 more than 10 million people have fled their homes and tried to find refuge in other surrounding countries like Poland, Romania and Hungary.
TEDxPaceAcademy members, freshman Claire Jiang, juniors Davis Rice and Luca Tanasa, ran a drive for goods for the organization, Atlanta for Ukraine. They delivered these goods to a Ukrainian American family that will ship the goods. These materials will be sent to people in Ukraine from Savannah to Lithuania and to Poland on behalf of TEDxPaceAcademy. They encouraged students to bring in nonperishable foods like grains, dried vegetables, protein bars and more. In addition, clothing, footwear, and pain relievers were extremely helpful. This is just one way that students could have helped and shown their support for the citizens of Ukraine.
Freshman Claire Jiang said, “Because of the current situation in Ukraine, many families are struggling to obtain basic necessities, hindering their fundamental human rights. As a result, TEDxPaceAcademy has partnered with Atlanta for Ukraine to provide humanitarian assistance through donations of non-perishables, medicinal and personal hygiene items, and new/lightly used clothing. So far, we’ve collected hundreds of supplies and hope to receive more”
Also, junior Ovie Nigudkar is collecting items to create supply kits for Ukrainian refugees. Students are able to contribute by donating items through an Amazon wishlist link. Students will be able to find QR codes around the school to access the website.