Last December, your support turned compassion into action. Combined with the matching gift, you and the Chalice community united last years Giving Tuesday to raise an astonishing $451,240.92 to confront these struggles.
This broke Chalice records!
Every donation to our Тримайся! ‘Hold on, Ukraine’ campaign changed lives. We’re delighted to share two of their stories:
Transforming Lives with Food ‘Miracle’
The war in Ukraine is deeply affecting families, even those who do not have loved ones on the front lines. The war has destabilized their agricultural markets, and food prices and shortages have increased dramatically compared to pre-conflict times. The cost of a loaf of bread alone has increased by nearly 19% since 2019.
“In times of war, fortunately, there is access to food, but prices for it continue to rise,” says Roman, Pochaiv site director. Staple products – bread, dairy, eggs, meat, cereals, sugar, and oil – are becoming unmanageably expensive for families of our sponsored children. The families in his site have no way of stocking their own pantries, and couldn’t fulfill an adult’s basic needs, let alone a child’s.
“Many families literally make up a family budget,” he says, “because they want to ‘take control’ of their lives, improve it, improve the lives of their children, but often they do not succeed on their own.”
Food insecure families are vulnerable to illness, fatigue, worsening chronic disease, and poor attention spans –which is reflected in the children’s grades. He and the site team saw too many instances of extreme food security during their routine home visits. They knew they had to act.
“Thanks to the next support of Chalice and the kind and generous hearts of donors, 423 children received funds to purchase products for their families,” he says.
“This is very valuable! This is health, this is well-being, this is an opportunity to move on.”
“This support of Chalice, as always, is timely and necessary, it is important. We thank you again, dear sponsors. Another miracle has happened.”
Sponsored student Yulia lives with her single mother and brother. It was a great relief when her mother received the nutrition support.
“This help is vital for our family, since my mother is raising my brother and me on her own, and it is difficult for her to meet our daily needs,” Yulia says. “By providing assistance, you are not just offering financial support but also giving joy and hope for a brighter future.”
Winter Warmth for Every Child
Olha’s home used to get so cold and damp, mold grew on the walls. Her sponsored son, Mykhaylo, has a severe physical disability. He likes to sit on the floor to play and sometimes falls asleep there.
“In previous years we had to put two sweaters and two pairs of pants on him to keep him warm,” Olha says. “We are not going to cut expenses on diapers.”
Sponsored families in our Ternopil site live with perpetual stress because they struggle to afford increasingly expensive food, personal care products, and medicine. Our site staff says that in 70% of their families, one or both parents are unemployed, and half the families have no regular income.
But when winter lasts for seven months, keeping their house a safe temperature becomes their greatest stressor of all.
“The key issue for Ukrainians in wintertime is to get their home heated,” says Khrystyna, Ternopil site director, “particularly for families with young children, sick family members, and seniors.”
Most sponsored children’s families in her site live in rural areas, relying on firewood for heating and cooking. With rising gas prices and the war disrupting supply, only financially well-off families can afford natural gas.
Thanks to your support of Chalice’s 2024 home heating program, Ternopil’s 103 most vulnerable sponsored families accessed firewood to heat their houses in wintertime.
Fieldworkers chose the recipient families, which were seconded by the Chalice family circles. None of the chosen families could have bought enough firewood without support.
“The heating assistance has been vitally important for the survival of the sponsored families in the wintertime,” Khrystyna says.
These families include 336 children, 179 of whom are sponsored. Besides the children, there are 218 family members.
There are 50 families like Olha’s, who have a child with a disability or serious illness, which makes a safe and dry atmosphere even more important.
Olha and 553 other Ternopil family members received the gift of a healthier, happier, hotter home.
“All the families supported are very thankful to Chalice,” Khrystyna says.
“The children have a night’s sleep in warm rooms, do their homework, play, and do many things during the day in warm environment,” Khrystyna says. They can wash and dry their hair without catching a chill.
Olha’s prayers were answered. “This season we can heat all the rooms in the house and be happy that the walls in the rooms will be dry and clean,” she says.
“This miracle has happened now because of you.”
We are getting ready for Giving Tuesday! This year, help us break new records by supporting all our sponsor sites. Our ambitious goal is to give 2025 GOATs (greatest of all time) gifts. These most needed items are carefully catered to each of our 13 countries, since each country has different needs.
One day. One mission. 2025 Goats!
Join the herd and be a part of lasting change!