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Svitlana K., back, and her children Vlad, 17, left, Elina, 15 and Lisa, 8. Svitlana and her children fled Ukraine when the war broke out to Slovakia then the Czech Republic. They were aided by Project 1K.$1K Project

The organizer: Alex Iskold

The pitch: Founding the $1k Project for Ukraine

Like a lot of people with deep roots in Ukraine, Alex Iskold felt helpless when Russia launched its invasion a year ago.

“When the war broke out, I knew that this was going to be a very prolonged conflict and I knew that there’d be a massive impact on families,” said Mr. Iskold, who came to the United States from Ukraine with his family in 1991.

Mr. Iskold had already been involved with charitable work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic but he quickly expanded his efforts to help people in Ukraine. With the help of 50 friends and colleagues, he launched the $1k Project for Ukraine.

The idea is that donors contribute US$1,000 to a Ukrainian family in need. “We effectively match donors’ dollars to the families and the families receive money directly in their bank account,” said Mr. Iskold who is a venture capitalist based in New Jersey.

He added that recipients are carefully screened to make sure that donations are directed to the most vulnerable. “We built a very strong system that allows us to deliver relief at scale,” he said adding that the screening process involves computer checks and volunteers who review each application.

Donors receive information about the family they have supported, which often includes thank-you notes. “It just creates such a personal connection,” he said. “And when you look at the impact, it’s really something.”

So far, the non-profit project has raised nearly US$12-million and supported around 11,000 Ukrainians.

While the organization is based in the U.S., Mr. Iskold said many Canadians have contributed, even though as foreign donors they are not eligible for a tax receipt. “Many Canadians have donated to us because people don’t necessarily care about a tax deduction. They just want to say ‘I helped this specific family.’ ”

Mr. Iskold doubts the war will end any time soon and he expects the project will be needed for many more months. “It does seem like Ukraine will win and we want it to win, but I think we shouldn’t celebrate prematurely. There’s still a lot of need.”

pwaldie@globeandmail.com

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