FLEX Alumni support refugees from Ukraine
Kaja Figlarska, FLEX Alumna '16
“I was born in Przemyśl, Poland. The closest city to the Ukrainian border. At the end of the February, I came to visit my mom since I had two weeks off after the exams at my university. And then the war started, it’s the 21st Century, and there is war in the country next to mine. I couldn’t believe it.
Most of Poles saw all the pictures of suffering people on the TV, online, or during the evening news. But I saw those people as I was passing the train station… So many of them. Small kids, adults, pets, pretty much everyone at the same place.”
“I started by offering accommodation at my mom’s place, we offered a room at her apartment at the train station and then I wrote a post on the Facebook group. We hosted 2 families who were sent to our place by the volunteers, two moms with their two daughters and a dog. They said they had never driven for so long before, but they had no other choice and decided to go to Poland. On the same evening, a man from France wrote to me on FB that his fiancé is coming with him to Przemyśl to pick up her 12-year-old daughter who is coming from Ukraine with a friend’s friends. They flew to Warsaw from France, someone they didn’t know drove them to Przemyśl but they had no place to stay, no car, and no idea when the girl will get to Poland. My mom and I slept on the floor, in my grandma’s room, so we could fit everybody.”
“The very next day, my boyfriend picked up from the border the daughter and two ladies who she was crossing the border with. Two women stayed at my mom’s place for one day more, but we needed to go to Kraków because I needed to come back for my uni classes, and we also dropped off the family of 3 at the airport, so they could return to France safely. Then I hosted two girls my age, at my place in Kraków, but unfortunately, my boyfriend, dog and I live in a really small apartment, so 3 days was the most we could do.”
“At the same time, many people (especially from Canada and the United States) started asking me how all of this works, how the situation is, and if life is safe here, especially in the city where my mom lives. I volunteered at my uni’s dorm, where around 120 Ukrainians currently live, and at the storage from which the Ukrainians who are in Kraków can take food, cosmetics, blankets, etc. Many people would like to help, but they can’t since they live in other countries, many don't believe in charities, don’t want to spend money on something unknown. So my brother’s in-law stepmom in Canada decided to collect some money from her friends and family so I could buy some essentials. Then I started posting about it, I showed all the receipts and photos of everything I bought, and we got more and more money but also packages ordered by our friends that started arriving at my place.
We have collected more than 10,630.32 PLN = almost 2500 USD, I received around 25 packages with sleeping mats, shampoos, brushes, underwear, and socks which we got delivered either to the train station, the storage at Daszynskiego 16, or Dobra Szafa (Plaza) in Kraków.
As I’m writing this note I have 4636.51 PLN left, and thanks to all the amazing people from the USA, Canada, and Germany, we have already bought:
- toilet paper - 48 rolls
- rice - 216 bags
- pasta - 138
- groats - 36
- Cereal - 40
- instant soups - 209
- cans of vegetables - 120
- canned fish and meat - 46
- pâté - 182
- coffee - 45
- salt - 10kg
- soap- 120
- detergent - 88
- little bags for separating things - 1000
- water - 198 bottles
- tea - 4680 bags
- pasta sauce - 15
- dog food - 22
- cat food - 20
- juice boxes- 204
- fruit chews - 24
- fruit puree - 132
- bananas 44 kg
- fruit syrup for tea- 8l
- biscuits - 48
- sesame seeds candies - 27
- croissants - 20
- granola bars- 50
- waffle bars - 35
- corn crunches - 20 packs
- milk - 36 liters
- bras - 52
- tights - 4
- nail polishes - 21 (so ladies can feel a little bit more taken care of now)
Couple of days ago, my sister mom, and I decided that kids deserve to have a normal life, so we also got:
- bags for kids - 123
- finger puppets - 130
- certificates of adopting an animal (finger puppet) in Ukrainian, which a FLEX alumna translated for me - 123
- coloring books, crayons, and sharpeners - 123
- wet wipes - 232 packages
- bars - 140
- edible bracelets - 144
- push pop bubble fidgets - 62
Any day now I will get those bags together and give them to the kids that are waiting in lines at the Consulate or other places.”
“Please don't forget that there is always a way to help. Not all of us can offer lots of money, a place to stay, or many hours spent on volunteering, but I am sure that each of us can do something for the Ukrainians now, and it’s really important to do so.”
We encourage everyone interested in supporting Ukrainians in need to contact Kaja via social media, who will be happy to suggest how to provide help.