Local teachers fundraise and bring supplies to Ukraine

Last May, Center Moriches social studies teacher, peer group leadership, varsity lacrosse, middle school football and varsity winter track coach, Chris Winslow, and another history teacher colleague, Craig Charvat, started a nonprofit called NY4Ukraine. 

The duo recently launched their website and Facebook page to help drive fundraising for the campaign. They made their first trip to the Ukraine over the summer of 2022, where they made a lot of great friends and contacts. During that trip, they visited with 17 bags of aid.

In addition to providing clean potable water filters and first-aid supplies to the 250,000 civilians in the city of Mykolaiv, NY4UKRAINE also assisted in providing essential combat supplies to the Mykolaiv Regional Guard. These supplies included body armor, camouflage clothing, and ballistic helmets.

“We feel very passionate about our support, and we are hoping to gain some traction promoting our mission,” Winslow said.

Their next trip back to the Ukraine will be in February. About 90 percent of their first trip was funded after being federally reorganized as a nonprofit. Winslow is a former United States Marine and said he is focused on supporting military units fighting on the front lines. On their next trip, they plan on bringing at least 30 bags of aid and will travel with a group of five. 

“This trip, we are expanding our aid and support to refugee camps inside the country, along with continuing to support the military units we developed a relationship with,” he explained. “We are having our school district art departments run an art campaign, where students will create art for the children in the camps.”

They also plan to bring art supplies and have the children in the camps create art, which will then be sent back to Long Island and used for fundraising. 

For more information, to get involved, or to donate visit www.NY4Ukraine.com. Or visit their Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ny4ukraine