As Ukrainians struggle to flee from the conflict, it’s important for everyone globally to contribute to various humanitarian efforts to make these transitions as easy as possible for the people of Ukraine. When the world seems darkest, there are always those whose compassionate actions light a path to happiness and prosperity.
These are the stories of some of those shining lights, and what they do to make these hard times easier for those most affected.
Alexandra Gizhitsa – Senior Marketing Operations Manager with Acronis in the United States of America
Alexandra grew up in Odesa, Ukraine, spending the first 17 years of her life in what she’s always considered the most beautiful city in the world. More than 250 years old, the port city is famous for its religious and ethnically diverse population, creating a hospitable and welcoming environment for people of all walks of life.
When Alexandra immigrated to Connecticut, she never put her past or heritage behind her, always proud of her roots and the people she left behind in her home country. Naturally, as soon as Alexandra became aware of the conflict in Ukraine, she sprung into action, taking a flight to Poland and eventually ending up in Slovakia, where she assisted with evacuations as well as assisting refugees with accommodations.
The first day after EU evacuations (left to right: Alexandra, Zhenya, Irina, Misha)
But even while in Connecticut, Alexandra was able to use the benefits of technology to deploy a multitude of different methods to help those back home, raising awareness, and providing logistical coverage. In her home town of Southington, CT the entire community, including Alexandra’s family members, friends, and neighbors, as well as local leaders held a major medical donation drive to assist those in Ukraine – an effort to support critical needs for on-the-ground evacuations.
Medical drive in Southington CT
Alexandra’s local synagogue Chabad House located in Simsbury CT provides logistical assistance, and a charitable amount of help to a large Jewish Ukrainian network located in war-torn Ukrainian territories. They help provide buses, medication, necessities, and lead search and rescue operations, among several other humanitarian efforts.
Even with all of the support from those surrounding her, Alexandra identified a few issues Ukraine is still struggling with. Problems include animal shelters struggling to host refugee pets, asking the United Nations and Red Cross International to enforce existing green corridors for evacuees, and the United States’ lack of a robust Ukrainian refugee program.
Acronis Cyber Foundation has partnered with UNICEF to alleviate the suffering of refugees from Ukraine. We have released funds of up to $250,000 for humanitarian assistance to those in need — our goal is to collect an additional $250,000 from Acronis’ donors through our partnership with UNICEF.
If you would like to support, please consider a donation here.
