Victoria, Hello! Could you tell us a bit more about yourself? What do you do?
My name is Victoria Sukmanovska. I work for an American logistics company. I have been volunteering as a copywriter for the charitable foundation «Riy» for a year now.
Have you expected a full-scale invasion? What was your February 24th like?
Like most people, I was not prepared for the war and did not fully believe it could happen. I did not expect it at all, even though my husband, who is a soldier, kept saying that there was going to be a war. Because they are gathering troops near our borders. You know this is a historical fact. Same thing happened in Georgia and Syria. The clue is they were gathering more and more troops closer to the New Year, and I was laughing and asking my husband: «Well, where is your big war»? So when it all happened, it was very scary.
I remember the morning of February 24th when my husband called and said: «Pack your things, you’ll be living at my mom’s. I’m going to war». After that, I opened the window and saw many people running on the street, crying, traffic jams everywhere, sirens. It was scary, just like in American war movies.
I understand you, probably we all felt like that. When did you decide to start volunteering with «Riy» and in general?
It was about a week after the full-scale invasion. I had many friends who had left Lviv and had empty apartments. At the same time, other friends from central Ukraine were looking for apartments, so I helped them to get in touch. I also collected a lot of packages with various supplies, made sandwiches, and transported them to the railway station for IDPs. We also wove camouflage nets in the church. Approximately in March, the head copywriter of charitable foundation «Riy» messaged me and offered to join them in order to fight against the aggressor with the help of the words and strengthen the army.
So, do you hold the position of a copywriter in this organization?
Yes, I am a copywriter volunteer at charitable foundation «Riy». Last week, I was promoted, and I am the coordinator of copywriters for this foundation now.
That’s wonderful! Could you tell us a bit more about the funding of the foundation? Is it mostly one-time donations, or do you have stable funding from large companies?
We have many patrons both in Ukraine and abroad. All our projects are funded by donations from kind-hearted people. We need 460 thousand hryvnias every month to sustain the foundation. Which will be allocated for attracting the specialists we require, increasing the salaries of employees to at least the market minimum, renting premises, and covering utility expenses.” Each charitable foundation has the right to take 20% of the donations to maintain the foundation, but «Riy» does not do that. We are a secure charitable organization. This is evidenced by the awards and honors we received from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense for being a reliable rear and a strong logistical partner. People trust us because they have heard about our volunteer activities on television.
In addition, we have launched a special project called «Riy – Vpered» which allows anyone to become a benefactor of the foundation and support us with a monthly payment. You choose the amount of the payment by yourself. This allows us to accumulate all 100% of the donations to close the fundraising.
The «Riy» charity covers many military needs. Can you share more about the specific areas you focus on?
We actually have many interesting projects. I am glad that everyone understands how crucial psychological rehabilitation is right now. It’s not just about the military, but also about their family members. Therefore, «Riy» has created a new project called «Ya YE». Its goal is to support pregnant military’s women and their children. If a military’s wife is pregnant and her husband is at war, she will receive 24/7 support. After delivering a baby, she will also get a guide of caring for the newborn.
Recently, we’ve decided that it would be appropriate to provide assistance to those who have lost their loved ones in the war. So, this is a really cool project with a lot of enthusiastic participants. Babies are born within this project – it’s wonderful!
It’s a very cool initiative. I really admire your work. Do you remember the biggest fundraiser you’ve ever organized?
The most expensive project of the charitable foundation «Riy» is the Mobile Laundry Complex (ML PC) that helps soldiers to recover physically and mentally. For instance, they can take a shower, which is a rarity on the front lines. The complex can go anywhere, equipped with washing machines and dryers. A soldier can come, wash, launder his things, get clean clothes, and rest regardless of the weather outside. The cost of one such complex was 460 thousand hryvnias. Last year, we managed to raise funds for 20 of these complexes and deliver them to the front lines. This year, the goal is significantly higher, but I believe we can achieve it.
You will definitely succeed! Could you tell us about the challenges you are facing?
Last year, we met not only deadlines, but also lost our office in Kyiv. Unfortunately, residents of the building where we rented the first floor said that we looked too well for volunteers, and it didn’t seem like volunteering at all despite many people weaving camouflage equipment in the basement. They claimed our charitable foundation’s activities could attract a missile strike on their building. As a result, they forced our lessor to cancel the contract with us. It was extremely offensive because the military was waiting for our help, and everything needed to be done as quickly as possible. Thanks to social media, we managed to find a new location and continue our work.
Besides, it is no secret that due to the exposure of various corruption schemes and the weak economic situation, people stop donating. For some reason, society is convinced that someone else will come and fix things, and they say: «I’m a little man. I cannot do anything». But in fact, our unity helped us to stop the enemy and spoil his plans at the beginning of the war. So now the main thing is to explain to people that we need to unite. No one will come from the West or America to save us, only we can stop this war and win it together.
Absolutely. What inspires you to write motivational posts, and what advice can you give to people who want to start volunteering?
Like everyone else, I get tired, and I have a lack of strength and motivation. However, when I see a video of a soldier’s thanks for a sleep system or hear the words: «Wow, you wove such a cool camouflage, and I was not visible on the thermal imager», I’ve realized that I wrote that post about camouflage somewhere, shared it somewhere, highlighted it somewhere, and it saved a soldier’s life. Indeed, the frontline is very large, but I believe words can kill russians and inspire Ukrainians to fight.
As for volunteering, it’s very easy. You can google and get a lot of options to help our military. Join the «Riy», because we are implementing cool projects that need people who are ready to fight. Please support our projects, come with your friends, and we will definitely get closer to our victory. The main thing is not to give up, no matter how tough it is now.
Thank you for your contribution to our victory. Your posts inspire us to action and are an extraordinary source of inspiration.
I am grateful for the invitation!
Translator: Yuliia Koleha
The material was produced with the support of the NGO «Institute of Mass Information» as part of a project of the international organisation Internews Network.
