In Palatine, Illinois, the Ukrainian community raised $14,029 to support severely wounded service members and the work of the Revived Soldiers Ukraine charitable foundation. The fundraiser took place on October 18 during four Divine Liturgies at the Parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Three Ukrainian defenders who are currently undergoing treatment and rehabilitation in Chicago also took part in the event.
This was reported by the charitable organization Revived Soldiers Ukraine.
On Sunday, October 18, representatives of the foundation, together with wounded Ukrainian service members, visited Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic Church in Palatine. During four services, parishioners donated $14,029 to support Ukraine’s defenders.
Three service members who are undergoing long-term treatment in the United States with the support of Revived Soldiers Ukraine joined the meeting with the community: Mykola Yukhymenko of the 79th Separate Air Assault Brigade, Serhii Yuriychuk of the 711th Separate Demining Brigade, and Artem Borysenko of the 151st Separate Mechanized Brigade.
The defenders spoke to parishioners about their combat experience, the injuries they sustained, and their difficult road to recovery. Foundation representative Mariana Balash told those present about programs for treating Ukrainian service members in the United States, the nature of their injuries, and prospects for further rehabilitation.
Special attention during the meeting was given to one of Revived Soldiers Ukraine’s key medical projects — the creation of a modern surgical unit at the Main Military Clinical Hospital in Kyiv for the installation of a da Vinci Xi robotic surgical system.
The project is being implemented in cooperation with the Medical Forces Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It includes the major renovation of two operating rooms and a sterilization unit, the installation of modern medical infrastructure, and the introduction of robotic technologies for complex surgical procedures.
The foundation emphasizes that implementation of the initiative largely depends on the support of donors and the Ukrainian diaspora.
Representatives of Revived Soldiers Ukraine thanked the church community and its pastor, Father Yaroslav Mendyuk, for organizing the fundraiser and for their many years of support for Ukrainian service members. They also expressed special gratitude to Mariana Vinnitska-Babiy, who helped organize the meeting, as well as volunteers Nataliia Boiko and Ihor Zaverukha.
The charitable organization stressed that such events are important to wounded defenders not only financially, but also emotionally. Meetings with Ukrainian communities abroad allow service members to feel the support of their compatriots while undergoing lengthy treatment far from home.
Photo: Revived Soldiers Ukraine
Author: Inna Mikhno