Ukraine: Donate and post

[JeepSleeHack]

The urge to share that you've done a good deed is very human. I would never share this information in RL, or on other online forums. But this is an anonymous forum so I can post with only minimal cringe.

I've donated £30 to the DEC

donation.dec.org.uk/ukraine-humanitarian-appeal

Knowing I was posting here acted as a stimulus for me for me to donate. If you don't need a similar stimulus then I'm a bit jealous But if, like me, knowing you can share your action helps, then that's cool too.

Name changed, obvs.

And I know most people know this, but just to re-post some useful info from the government website about why its better to donate money than goods:

Donating essential supplies

*One of the best ways to help is by donating cash through trusted charities and aid organisations, rather than donating goods. Cash can be transferred quickly to areas where it is needed and individuals and aid organisations can use it to buy what is most needed. Unsolicited donations of goods, although well-meant, can obstruct supply chains and delay more urgent life-saving assistance from getting through.

👍Nice thread
£20 donated

I've donated too and I would urge others to donate cash through DEC and others rather than donating things, DEC etc are well placed to have the logistical operation on the ground to deliver where needed and it is much cheaper to buy eg nappies or sanitary products in the region rather than sticking them on a truck that doesn't quite know where its going and has to drive across Europe.

I donated to Red Cross on Wednesday and then saw this appeal yesterday.
Just repeating no to the people collecting 'stuff'

Thanks for sharing this & well said @nearlyspringyay.

So many people in our town have used this as an opportunity to just donate absolute tat. Now they are collecting food & medicine to take into Ukraine without having looked into any export controls etc.

The pound will go much further in Eastern Europe & it’s much more important that every pound goes into on the ground work, rather than petrol costs or logistics of shipping van-loads of stuff across Europe.

Thank you. I just donated!

I've donated, I felt that I had to do something for those poor people 😢😢

I donated £50 to the Red Cross a couple of days ago. Stressing out a little bit as I've been out of work since December and am now bloody overdrawn! But then feeling guilty for feeling stressed about it because I'm in my nice warm safe home and don't know how insanely lucky I am.

I donated £100 to the Red Cross yesterday. It didn't make me feel any better though.

www.wearelumos.org/

JK Rowling's Lumos Foundation is fundraising for children in Ukraine. Unlike other charities, every penny you send goes to the people who need help as she covers all the overheads

I donated early this morning to DEC.

Donated £25 to Red Cross last Friday.

So important to get that message out
Mum had a call from a friend who actually bought a load of stuff to donate and then was turned away by the place co-ordinating donations because they're overwhemed with stuff.

Mum didn't have the heart to say "best thing to do is get it refunded and send the money".

We have sent £50 already but good to know about Lumos.

Hi OP

We usually move these threads to the noticeboard but given the current situation in Ukraine we’re happy to move it back into chat. Please bear in mind we don’t allow links to private fundraisers/crowdfunding - only registered charities.

DEC got my money. They double it apparently. And you can use PayPal.

Much better than sending my old blankets duvets and clothes via a charity - which would cost a lot of diesel to transport for many miles when my money could get more bang for the buck when spent on blankets etc nearer the refugee sites.

Well I donated 20 new sleeping bags, blankets, toiletries and my dds used but perfectly fine pushchair after seeing mothers getting off a train and being so relieved to see pushchairs available.

DEC got my money too. I donated £50 and it turned into £112.50 with gift aid and the match from the government.

The matching and gift aid makes it by far the most effective way for UK taxpayers to donate, I think.

I also donated £40 to a crowdfunder to try and get real information to Russians in Russia via online ads. www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/give-russians-real-news-about-ukraine-using-ads

I chose DEC too but interested in the one Rowling has set up for future donations.

I made a small donation via DEC. Give what you can. Don’t give what you can’t.

I donate through work, to the red cross, as our employer is matching ours dollar for dollar.
Happy to see this thread

I sent 200 to a charity in that arranges evacuation buses and accommodation in a baltic state. We can tap to donate 2 euro to Red Cross for Ukraine at our local supermarket and I have done that every time I have been to the shop.

Thank you, have now shared the link and donated.

I donated £50 to red cross yesterday

DEC here. DH did it, I don't know how much but it would have been generous.

Lovely young adult DC sent a message asking if it was OK to just give me a card for Mother's Day and do a Red Cross donation instead of flowers. Very proud of them indeed

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-60623162

I can recommend the City of Sanctuary UK website for links to organisations to donate to - including the Red Cross and DEC but there are others, links to Ukraine-based journalism and guidance on how to talk to children about the invasion.

I also want to mention Lumos specifically. They now have a Ukraine Disaster Appeal but have been working in Ukraine since 2013. Ukraine has one of the highest numbers of children in orphanages and institutions in Europe. Over 100,000 of the most vulnerable children - especially disabled children - are currently trapped in Ukraine's orphanages and institutions in a war zone. 100% of personal donations go to help and nothing will go to administration costs and so on. Please be careful as there are similar-sounding organisations with Lumos in their title. You need www.wearelumos.org and there is a specific Ukraine Disaster Appeal page for one-off or regular donations, large or small. Thank you.