The U.S.-Ukraine Foundation’s Humanitarian Aid Program sent a 40-foot tractor trailer on April 29 to Ukraine. The container, filled with 20 tons of medical supplies and valued at $300,000-$400,000, left for Ukraine from the Fairfax, Va., county regional office of the Brother’s Brother Foundation. A portion of the donated goods came from the Pittsburgh area, where Dr. Alexander Kirichenko, a radiation oncologist at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, led donations from Allegheny Health Network, Butler Health System, Trinity Health System in Steubenville, Ohio, and St. Mary Ukrainian Orthodox Church in McKees Rocks, Pa. In the Washington area, Tetyana Neeley, the U.S.-Ukraine Foundation’s humanitarian aid coordinator, worked the logistics of donations; international shipping was thanks to Meest; delivery logistics in Ukraine were handled by Kozhen Mozhe, which was to distribute the donated goods to hospitals primarily in eastern and central Ukraine, where the need is the greatest.
The Ukrainian American Heritage Foundation of Boston – a 95-year-old institution – voted to curtail its activities and to divide the bulk of its assets between the two Ukrainian churches in Boston. St. Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Church was presented a check in the amount of $125,000 on April 26 and Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic Church received the same amount on May 3. Metropolitan Antony of the UOC-U.S.A. unveiled and dedicated a plaque to the UAHF and its predecessor, the Ukrainian American Educational Citizens’ Club of Mattapan, for its many years of service to the Ukrainian American community of the greater Boston area. Walter Boyko, president of the UAHF, spoke at both presentations, recalling the historical progression of the UAHF.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) was honored on May 2 for his support of Ukraine during a reception held at the Ukrainian American Cultural Center of New Jersey in Whippany. During the ceremony, Sen. Menendez was presented a plaque from the Ukrainian National Association and the Friend of UNIS Award from the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America. In introducing the senator’s work for Ukraine, Yuriy Symczyk, fraternal coordinator for the UNA, said, “How fortunate we are that he was appointed chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 2013. His leadership role directly resulted in the Senate adopting such a supportive role of Ukraine. It was he, along with Sen. [Bob] Corker [R-Tenn.] who introduced the Ukraine Freedom Support Act. Without his leadership, our community’s voices may not have been heard.”
Sen. Menendez commented, “Frankly, I’m disappointed with the [Obama] administration, required [by the Ukrainian Freedom Support Act] to report to Congress on its plan for increasing military assistance to Ukraine, it was two months late in sending it. And when the report finally arrived, it did not include a section on lethal defensive assistance – assistance the administration has not provided to the Ukrainian military in contravention of the will of Congress and the recommendation of a cadre of current and former administration officials and experts.”
Ms. Olexy, president of the UCCA, noted: “You have understood from the start that the international community, and especially the United States, cannot remain passive in the face of Russian aggression in Ukraine, for remaining passive will only invite further aggression. …You have led and continue to lead congressional efforts to penalize Russia for its invasion and illegal occupation of Crimea, for its support of terrorists in eastern Ukraine.”
On May 3, a former ambassador to Ukraine, William Green Miller, was awarded the Alexander B. Chernyk Medal by the Ukrainian Federation of America “for his outstanding leadership and deep commitment to U.S.-Ukraine relations” during an annual awards ceremony held at the Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center in Jenkintown, Pa. The event was attended by former Rep. Charles Dougherty, former co-chair of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, who thanked Mr. Miller for his work that has spanned seven decades.
The UCCA celebrated the 75th anniversary of its founding on May 20 during a reception at the Senate Visitor’s Center in Washington. Members of Congress present at the reception were: Reps. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), chair of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces; Bill Pascrell (D-N.J), Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.), Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.), and Robin Kelly (D-Ill.). Also present were past UCCA presidents, Mr. Sawkiw and Askold Lozynskyj. Eugene Czolij, president of the Ukrainian World Congress, and Ambassador Zygimantis Pavilionis of Lithuania praised UCCA’s work and its importance today. Also represented were Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Sander Levin (D- Mich.), Mike Fitzpatrick, (R-Pa.), as well as the Embassy of Latvia, the CEEC, Polish American Congress, Lithuanian-American Community, Joint Baltic American National Committee and Jewish American organizations, as well as the Open World, Open Society and Soros foundations, the American Foreign Policy Council and Atlantic Council think tanks, Ukrainian American credit unions, the UNA and other organizations, as well as clergy of the Ukrainian Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
Yaro Bihun
UCCA President Tamara Olexy speaks at the organization’s 75th anniversary event in Washington about the goals the UCCA set for itself in 1940 and what they are today given current developments in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Minister of Youth and Sports Ihor Zhdanov met with Ukrainian American youth development organizations at the UCCA office in New York on June 2. Organizations represented at the event included Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization U.S.A., the Ukrainian American Youth Association, the Federation of Ukrainian Student Organizations of America (SUSTA), the Ukrainian Sports Federation of the U.S.A. and Canada (USCAK) and the Self Reliance School of Ukrainian Studies in New York. Additional exchange programs in sports between Ukraine and the U.S., especially for children in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, were discussed.
Former Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko met with UCCA representatives on June 3 in Washington to discuss how the diaspora can assist Ukraine. Ms. Tymoshenko said that defensive military equipment from the U.S. would be the only way for Ukraine to maintain its territorial integrity, adding that the equipment would need to be a sufficient deterrent against further Russian escalation. She said Ukraine’s economic future was also in question and also cited the humanitarian crisis facing the country.