LVIV – Since Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine on February 24, people throughout the country have had to make the difficult choice of either fleeing their homeland or staying to help with the war effort, either as warriors who have taken up arms or as volunteers who are doing what they can to support their country’s military.
Over the course of three months, many Ukrainians have mastered the art of fundraising, finding creative ways to raise money for the cause, while others have simply auctioned off their valuables.
Eurovision trophy
Members of the Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra, which won this year’s Eurovision song contest, decided they would sell their crystal prize. They got $900,000 for the trophy, which they donated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The crystal microphone, which was presented to the musicians on the stage of the competition in Turin, Italy, was sold at auction on Facebook. Famed Ukrainian television presenter Serhiy Prytula’s charitable foundation, named after Mr. Prytula, organized the auction and managed the funds.
“Friends, you are incredible! We are grateful to each of you who donated money to this auction, especially to the Whitebit team, who bought the cup for $900,000 and have become the trophy owners. Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” the Kalush band wrote on their Facebook page.
In addition, the iconic pink Panama hat worn by the band’s lead singer, Oleg Psiuk, when he performed at the Eurovision contest was sold at auction. The winning bid was 11 million hryvnia, or roughly $370,000.
The money from the sale of the trophy and hat will be used to purchase Ukrainian-made PD-2 drones for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, according to Mr. Prytula. The country’s military has relied heavily on such drones for surveillance and warfare.
The auction coincided with a performance by the Kalush Orchestra at a charity concert at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, which also raised money for the purchase of medicines and other items needed by war casualties.
During the concert, Mr. Psiuk urged people in the audience not to forget about the war.
“I think it should be on the front pages until peace comes,” Mr. Psiuk said on stage.
The Kalush Orchestra won Eurovision 2022 with the song “Stefania.”
While performing at Eurovision, Mr. Psiuk called on the international community to help those Ukrainian soldiers who had been defending the Ukrainian seaside town of Mariupol and, more specifically, the Azovstal steel plant.
The decision to auction the 2022 Eurovision trophy was no surprise. At a press conference following the band’s victory, Mr. Psiuk promised to auction the Eurovision prize to benefit the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Buying Bayraktar drones
Lithuanians raised millions of euros that they used to purchase a Bayraktar drone for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“In just three-and-a-half days, Lithuanians have raised 5 million euros to purchase a Bayraktar drone for Ukraine as part of a crowdfunding initiative,” the Lithuanian government announced on Twitter.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anušauskas also confirmed the news.
“Lithuanians have just done it! Thank you to everyone who helped us raise 5 million euros for Bayraktar in 3 days! Ukraine, we are with you!” Mr. Anušauskas wrote in a post on Twitter.
The campaign was initiated by television host and public opinion leader Andrius Tapinas, who launched the campaign on May 25, saying he had approval for such a potential purchase from the Lithuanian and Turkish defense ministries, as well as the drones’ manufacturer.
On May 26, Mr. Tapinas hosted a special television broadcast to kick off the campaign to raise money for the drone. Top Lithuanian officials and the Ukrainian ambassador to the country also took part in the event.
Former Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite joined the campaign, as did current President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Ingrida Shimonite. The Lithuanian defense minister, Mr. Anušauskas, also took part in the event and he called on the public to join the fundraising campaign via social media.
By the second day of the campaign, organizers collected 3 million euros, and by the start of the third day they had $ 4 million euros.
Most of the contributions were under 500 euros and they came predominantly from people in Lituania, Mr. Tapinas said.
On the afternoon of May 28, Mr. Tapinas urged people to help the group reach its crowdfunding goal of 5 million euros, which it originally sought to do in three weeks. But Lithuanians got it done even faster.
“Bayraktar has become a unifying idea,” Mr. Tapinas wrote on Twitter. “Currently, we are the only country in history where citizens used their money to buy heavy military weapons for another country. Yes, the British once bought wings for Spitfire aircraft during World War II, but they were saving their home. We are a country buying a military drone for Ukraine.”
“With this story, we send a message to the people of the world that there is a strange little country on the border with Russia whose people bought Ukraine a military drone. We continue to pass the challenge on to every European. For everyone in the civilized world, take it and do it! Put pressure on your stars, your businesses, your politicians!” Mr. Tapinas said.
A drone in a day
The Ukrainian non-governmental organization Come Back Alive raised 30 million hryvnias in a day on May 7. The fundraiser sought to raise money for the purchase of two PD-2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), a car and thermal imaging cameras.
There were 16,501 donations made during the fundraiser. The largest donation was 150,000 hryvnias, while the smallest was one hryvnia. The average donation was about 2,000 hryvnias, according to the organization.
“All payments went immediately to the Come Back Alive Foundation account,” said the organizers of the initiative.
The UAVs are used both for air reconnaissance and combat as they can bombs. The Armed Forces of Ukraine has not yet purchased the UAVs, according to the organizers of the initiative.
While the initiative raised 30 million hryvnia in one day, it has also brought in more than $100 million (roughly 3 billion hryvnias, excluding cryptocurrency) from February 24 to May 16 to help the army.
“Thanks to your donations, we are, in particular, modernizing the air defense so that Ukrainians can say, ‘It’s not a missile strike. It’s ours who shot down an enemy missile!’ We are providing mobile fire brigades with cars so that the news headlines read, ‘Ukrainian military shot down 10 enemy drones in a day,’” Come Back Alive wrote on its Facebook page.
Café owner funds drone purchase
Military veteran and co-founder of cafe Veterano Brownie Roman Nabozhnyak organized a charity auction that raised $50,000. The money was used to buy a Punisher drone for the Ukrainian army, Mr. Nabozhnyak wrote on his Facebook page.
The café has been a favorite spot for many in Kyiv’s Podil neighborhood since 2019 when Mr. Nabozhnyak opened it after returning from serving in the Ukrainian military earlier in the war.
The café, which has been known for selling a package that contains the ingredients and recipe for their brownie which individuals can bake at home, is part of the Veterano Group, a business that helps the Ukrainian families of fallen war veterans.
“I made a difficult but necessary decision at this stage to turn Veterano Brownie into a Punisher drone,” Mr. Nabozhnyak wrote on his Facebook page.
The café has not been open recently and it will probably not be possible to resume work until the end of the war, he said. So, Mr. Nabozhnyak decided to sell items from the coffee shop (dishes, furniture and other equipment) and invest the proceeds in the purchase of drone.
“Anyone who has ever considered Veterano Brownie their place can now literally take a part of it,” he wrote on Facebook on May 31.
And the next day, he announced the fundraiser was finished, as it raised $50,000 in 26 hours.
“On the one hand, I’m shocked. On the other hand, it is Ukraine. Everything is possible here,” Mr. Nabozhnyak wrote on Facebook.