Scouts for Ukraine is focused on fundraising and logistical efforts to provide humanitarian aid to Ukraine. This group was created by Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization – USA after the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, to leverage the expertise and strengths of the Plast network to effectively and efficiently deliver aid where needed.
From February 2022 to August 2024, Scouts for Ukraine has delivered over $30 million of aid to Ukraine. Thank you for your generous support!
Humanitarian and Medical Aid
Donated mobile field hospitals and protective vests, along with purchased portable ultrasounds, wound vacs, external bone fixators, blood volumizers, tourniquets, and other strategic medical supplies were sent to the front lines, totaling $28,800,000.
We also answered the call for portable generators, solar panels, power packs, and tools, to the sum of $91,000, in response to bombings of power and communication networks, and the critical need for emergency power in field hospitals.
In addition, plastuny of all ages in the USA participated in various projects to support plastuny-defenders, encouraging their neighbors, school mates, and friends to join the effort. Two such noteworthy projects include the assembly of 98,927 Pocket First Aid Kits and the stuffing of 3,219 warm socks with emergency blankets, hand warmers, earplugs, and energy bars.
Logistics
Our logistics team has coordinated the air and sea delivery of $2,400,000 worth of equipment and materials to Ukraine, including medical equipment and supplies, vehicles, fire-fighting equipment, shipping containers for grain, etc. Working closely with Plast Poland, warehouses were established on the border to ensure efficient and trustworthy transfer to the network of plastuny within Ukraine, who deliver the goods where needed.
Vehicles
Initially, vehicles were acquired and appropriately equipped in the USA and then sent to Ukraine. However, as the war continued, it became more expeditious to acquire equipment and materials overseas. Therefore, we shipped 3 vehicles with spare parts to Ukraine and donated an additional $25,000 to help Plast Lviv purchase trucks, critical to the daily provision of humanitarian aid from the central hub in the Plast Emergency Network located in Lviv. Altogether, $81,000 was spent on vehicles, parts, and repairs.
Personal Well-being
We not only focused on the delivery of tangible goods to Ukraine, but also on the well-being of our plastuny, especially the mental health of children. To help address this issue, Scouts for Ukraine spent $137,000 to enable 1,037 plastuny in 2022 and another 686 in 2023 to attend summer and winter camps alongside scouts in Poland, Italy, Lithuania, and Slovakia.
Plast-Poland received $40,000 from Scouts for Ukraine to establish two safe haven locations for refugees. In the USA, $35,000 was provided to help 83 children of Ukrainian refugees assimilate easily into their new Plast communities, including their participation in summer camps.
To bolster the spirits of plastuny defenders and their colleagues, $70,000 was spent to fund Christmas and Easter meals that were delivered to the frontlines. Each year, about 600 Christmas dinners were delivered.
Scholarships
After the war, another set of challenges will face the ravaged country. Anticipating the future, we have taken a proactive stance in ensuring plastuny in Ukraine, as well as families of fallen plastuny, receive the best education to become the strong leaders Ukraine needs for a successful future. To this end, a permanent scholarship was endowed at the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU). Scouts for Ukraine contributed the initial sum of $100,000 to launch the scholarship.
Scouts for Ukraine also contributed $14,000 to the scholarship established in honor of Artem Dymyd, a key plastun killed during the war, for plastuny pursuing bachelor’s or master’s degrees
The Future
Looking forward, we are hoping for a swift and just conclusion to the war. In the meantime, our goal is to continue to assist Plast Ukraine in their efforts to support plastuny, especially those who have been injured and families of those who have been killed. We will help ensure that trucks are running, supplies are distributed where needed, and young plastuny are able to form some happy memories amid the chaos of war.
Ukraine’s needs are many and will continue to be so in the near future. Therefore, Scouts for Ukraine is asking for your continued help to support Ukraine through your charitable donations.
Thank you for all your donations to date. We look forward to working together with you to lay down a foundation for a stronger Ukraine after the war!
