Ukraine TrustChain, a Chicago-based, entirely volunteer-led not-for-profit that funds aid and evacuations for Ukrainian civilians, announced that it has facilitated the successful evacuation of more than 13,000 Ukrainians since February 25, 2022. These evacuations from war torn areas of Ukraine, which primarily include women, children, the elderly and persons with disabilities, were organized by a U.S. based operations team that funds as many as seven teams on the ground in Ukraine, focused on evacuations and humanitarian needs.
In addition to evacuations, Ukraine TrustChain collects and distributes critical funds to volunteer teams in Ukraine who make urgent deliveries, including medicine, first aid, baby formula, food, clothing and hygiene products to civilians displaced by the conflict. The team also provides meals for approximately 35,000 to 50,000 Ukrainians each week depending on availability of supplies and ground conditions.
Ukraine TrustChain has facilitated the successful evacuation of more than 13,000 Ukrainians since February 25, 2022
The U.S. team delivers 100% of donated funds directly to the volunteers serving Ukrainian people impacted by the Russian invasion. Our teams in Ukraine are bound to our US team by personal relationships and deeply established trust. Teams we fund in Ukraine display an unwavering love for their Ukrainian homeland. They tirelessly deliver aid, at great personal risk, where it is too difficult and too dangerous for international aid organizations to venture."
Daniil Cherkasskiy, founder of Ukraine TrustChain
Ukraine TrustChain was launched in late February 2022 after Cherkasskiy, a Ukraine native who immigrated to Chicago in 1999, received a phone call from a close friend whose preemie twins were trapped in Kyiv and in desperate need of preemie baby formula.
Through a series of connections Cherkasskiy was put in-touch with Natalia Mytsuta, a real estate agent and mother herself, located in Kyiv. Instead of evacuating, Mytsuta risked her life – traveling between bombed pharmacies – attempting to secure formula for a stranger's babies. This act of profound kindness formed the first link in the Ukraine TrustChain; since then, her team alone has grown to nearly 100 individuals.
When not working to provide humanitarian aid to those in crisis, Cherkasskiy's day job is as the Director of Analytics for ShowingTime, a Zillow Group company. His background in technology inspired the idea for Ukraine TrustChain.
"Just as blockchain relies on sequences of hashes to validate a transaction, Ukraine TrustChain relies on chains of deep interpersonal relationships leading to Ukranians in the conflict zone to deliver aid where and when it is needed most," said Cherkasskiy. "In a more literal sense, one of our most effective forms of donations is Bitcoin. Ukraine TrustChain converts Bitcoin to real world currency that is loaded onto locally-issued Ukrainian bank cards; this gives recipients almost instant access to funds without encountering life-threatening obstacles."
In addition to Bitcoin, Ukraine TrustChain accepts donations via Zelle, Chase QuickPay, PayPal and credit card. Operating at zero overhead, 100% of all donations go directly to support volunteer efforts; a donation of as little as $3 can evacuate a person from the war zone while a donation of $15,000 or more can fund an entire team at scale for a week.
About Ukraine TrustChain
Ukraine TrustChain is a US based volunteer operation funding 100% vetted volunteer teams in Ukraine who make urgent deliveries, including medicine, first aid, baby formula, food, clothing, and hygienic products. Teams evacuate children and seniors from the front lines and provide basic needs to civilians, including the volunteer defense forces: fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters protecting their homeland and loved ones from Russian troops.
Ukraine TrustChain is an Illinois not-for-profit corporation and is in the process of applying to the Internal Revenue Service for tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.