TAMPA BAY, Fla. — On February 24, 2022—Tampa bay, along with the rest of the world, watched as Russia invaded Ukraine.
But as the days carried on and the visual horror of war set in— the Tampa Bay area didn't just continue to watch, it mobilized.
Round-the-clock donation drives—popped up in places across the region, like at the Epiphany of Our Lord Ukrainian church in St. Petersburg.
The work came as a welcome distraction to many local Ukrainians, like Khrystyna Hechlacz, who have loved ones trapped by the invasion.
"It's touching, it's amazing, and those people, most of them, didn't know where Ukraine exists," she said.
But the help didn't stop there.
Fifth-graders at the Community Day School in Sarasota raised $500 to help Ukrainian orphans.
"There were these innocent people that don't know what they're going to do. They have to flee. They have to leave everything behind," said Miles Meredith.
StemRad, in Tampa, donated vests to protect frontline fighters from radiation.
While others, like the owners of Veskolini Cafe in Dunedin, housed Ukrainian refugees.
“We didn’t expect so much love and support from people," said Ukrainian refugee Katya Levchenko.
And still others, like the nonprofit NICERFL, worked to teach refugees English.
But the folks from the Tampa Bay area didn't just help stateside. They also went to eastern Europe.
They're people like the co-founder of Project Dynamo, Bryan Stern.
The Tampa-based rescue group, through multiple missions, has brought hundreds to the safety of neighboring countries and beyond.
"What’s terrible about doing evacuations is you have to make really, really, really hard, terrible choices every single day. I’ve had to make people rip apart their own families," said Stern.
And for those who couldn't leave—Tampa Bay area groups like Generation Hope International brought in some goodwill in the form of supplies.
While others, like Simone Knego, who traveled to the Ukraine-Poland border with the Jewish Federation of North America, worked to leave behind a little joy for the youngest survivors.
“I did bring some toys and puzzles and coloring books and stuff like that as well because I can’t imagine as a child being displaced and having to decide what you are going to take in that one bag that you are carrying across the border," she said.
