PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Hundreds of people showed up on Sunday for a Fairmount fundraiser to help the victims of the war in Ukraine. Volunteers made and served traditional foods at the Ukrainian League of Philadelphia, and cashed in to the tune of thousands.
Volunteers could hardly keep up with the demand, as people passed through the steaming service lines, one after the other, asking for handmade pierogi, borscht, stuffed cabbage, potato pancakes and kielbasa and sauerkraut.
Dora Shoturma, who sold baked goods, said she was grateful for the outpouring of support from all walks of life.
“All of these people who came to show their support — it’s incredibly emotional,” she said. “We are first generation born here, and our families — some of them still in Ukraine. So each day is heart-wrenching. This is what keeps us from sitting at home and crying. We have to do things like this. We have to come together.”
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Another woman, who bought food to eat on the premises and to take home, said she’s not even Ukrainian American — she’s of Italian descent — but it was important for her to support the Ukrainian people.
“We have to support the people in Europe and we have to stop Putin,” she said, fighting back tears, her voice full of emotion. “I’m sorry. It’s very difficult. We’re in the same boat now and we have to pull together.”
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Mykola Kosyk is the vice president of the Ukrainian League. She said every penny will be sent to relief efforts in Ukraine — “where they need clothing, they need medical supplies, they need military equipment and basic toiletries.”
Vasyl Litkewycz, a Ukrainian League board member, said the group has credibility with the community in Fairmount. “We just try to continue pushing on the Ukrainian tradition and culture and bring in people who are not Ukrainian to help us and to keep us all moving on,” he said.
Besides the foods, wreathes, pins and signs were also sold to raise money.
