Imagine coming to a country thousands of miles from your home, leaving your family and loved ones behind – only to one day wake up to find them and millions of others in the middle of a war zone. That is the reality East Tennessee State University alumnus Yaroslav (Yaro) Hnatusko lives every day.
Combined with the love for his homeland and the skills Hnatusko honed at ETSU, he and his brother co-founded Restore Ukraine —a nonprofit organization aimed at providing essential humanitarian aid to those affected by the crisis in Ukraine. When war broke out in Ukraine in 2022, Hnatusko’s friend woke him up by pounding on his door to tell him the news. Hnatusko immediately knew he had to do something to help his family and those who had no means to evacuate.
Hnatusko started by asking friends and family to donate money. Within the first week of the war, Hnatusko and his team were already feeding several hundred people. They quickly escalated their operations to feed several thousand people.
After realizing the need to upscale, Hnatusko and the Restore Ukraine team converted their private fundraiser into a standalone nonprofit organization in Ukraine and the U.S.
By the end of 2022, they had already raised over $1.5 million for humanitarian support. The organization continues to grow and expand its outreach. Over the past year, dozens of volunteers on the ground have dispersed humanitarian supplies worth over $2.2 million, which has helped more than 20,000 people.
“But we couldn't do it alone,” said Hnatusko. “Before I moved to East Tennessee, I lived in six different states. I chose to attend ETSU because of the powerful sense of community. I was looking for a culture where I wouldn’t be alone.”
Hnatusko continues to express his gratitude for the overwhelming support Restore Ukraine has received from across the region. Volunteers across the Appalachian Highlands rallied to support fundraisers, volunteered their time, and become advocates for the people of Ukraine.
With that growing support locally and beyond, Hnatusko and his team will continue their efforts to provide humanitarian aid to those affected by the war in Ukraine. For more information about Restore Ukraine and their efforts, please visit their website at restore-ukraine.org.
Update for July 2024:
After over two years of relentless conflict and devastating warfare, RESTORE UKRAINE is proud to announce a fundraising campaign to assist dozens of Ukrainian families in the Kharkiv region near the Russian border. To provide a closer look at this crucial initiative, we have recorded a video documenting the project's impact and the urgent needs of the affected families.
Over these years, Ukraine has witnessed a staggering increase in airstrikes and hostilities. The impact has been catastrophic, causing extensive damage to vital civilian infrastructure like homes, hospitals, schools, and energy facilities in the Kharkiv region. In 2024 alone, Russia has launched 1,000 missiles, 2,800 suicide drones, and 7,000 guided aerial bombs over Ukraine.
Without any improvement on the horizon, Ukrainian families continue to endure unspeakable hardships: Russian forces have already damaged 5,913 apartment buildings and 20,000 private households in the Kharkiv region, where RESTORE UKRAINE will implement the Emergency Shelter Response project. These attacks have already left 150,000 people without permanent residence or a sense of home.
To address the urgent need for shelter and reconstruction, RESTORE UKRAINE is implementing the Emergency Shelter Response voucher program aimed at assisting 100 households with construction materials at no cost. The vouchers with a set value of 1,000 USD can be redeemed by project beneficiaries who have been impacted by the humanitarian crisis, inflation, unemployment, or directly by Russian strikes.
Through the Emergency Shelter Response, RESTORE UKRAINE aims to reach 100 homes requiring light and medium non-structural repair. The organization's intervention focuses on restoring the essential thermal envelope and preventing further damage to structural components. Therefore, the assistance will include high-demand material such as roofing, flooring, plumbing, electrical, insulation, heating systems, and more.
The selection criteria for project beneficiaries will prioritize households directly impacted by Russian missiles and drones, with a special focus on vulnerable populations. This includes people with disabilities and/or chronic illnesses, individuals recovering from injuries, the elderly, pregnant women, single-parent families, families with multiple children, families with no sources of income, and those ineligible for government aid.
Without help, these families will be forced to endure the harsh winter conditions of 2025 without a safe and insulated shelter. According to United Nations estimates, 1.7 million people throughout Ukraine required winter assistance through March 2024. By replacing and restoring the damaged core elements of their homes, your support can help get at least 100 homes back to the conditions they were in before the onset of this devastating war.
We urgently call upon the American community to support RESTORE UKRAINE's Emergency Shelter Response campaign by making donations. Your generosity can make a significant impact: 1,000 USD worth of materials in the US costs only 306 USD in Ukraine due to economic differences between the two countries. In other words, a 1,000 USD voucher in Ukraine will allow families to buy over three times the amount of materials! That means three times the bricks, three times the insulation, and three times the heating that Ukrainians desperately need right now.
The fundraising goal for the campaign is set at 100,000 USD to allow for 100 vouchers. The primary goal of the project is to facilitate the return of vulnerable families to their homes, preventing further displacement.
Yaro Hnatusko, Executive Director of RESTORE UKRAINE, emphasized that 100% of donations will directly fund the purchase of construction materials to aid vulnerable families.
"Our goal is not to solve an entire humanitarian crisis or assist every affected household in Kharkiv, but by lifting Ukrainians out of extreme poverty, we can ignite a cycle of mutual support within communities. Your contribution starts a chain reaction of people helping one another, and your impact will extend far beyond your donation!"
Join us in our mission today and watch our video to see firsthand the difference your support can make!"