03/11/2022
It is my son’s birthday today, Happy Birthday Lucas! He is the best and I love him so much. However, I can’t help my mind keep drifting to the situation in Ukraine. My son is having a wonderful, safe birthday. I wonder how many other children from Ukraine have birthdays today? Yet they are in a basement bomb shelter, or torn away from their fathers as they flee with their mothers or have already lost loved ones that have died from the conflict in Ukraine? It just doesn’t seem fair. I am blessed that my son will have a wonderful birthday party but I should not take it for granted or forget other children who may not have the same opportunity.
I have two adopted sisters from Ukraine. They both have biological family still there including one with a disabled son in a wheelchair whom she somehow managed to get to Poland but now they do not have anywhere to stay. They were sleeping in their car last I heard.
In addition I manage an internet marketing company, Elemerce. We have two employees in Ukraine and several others in Eastern Europe. The situation in Ukraine is as bad as you see on the news. It really hits home when you know someone there that is suffering. We are going to raise some funds to help my sister’s family, our two employees as well as give some funds to one of our employees in Romania who has already been giving all he has to help many refugees including the wife and children of one of the other employees in Ukraine.
If anyone wants to donate to help directly feel free to send a donation to -llc (yellow ‘e’ logo for profile pic) on Venmo. Elemerce and our staff will match what you donate. 200% of whatever you donate will go directly to help Alexey, Max, Doru (helping MANY other refugees in Romania), and my sister’s family. For those that may read this and may not know me personally and are uneasy about donating to us, I still encourage you to donate to other vetted charities that are helping Ukrainian refugees.
I will introduce you to them:
Alexey Chernovalov – Alexey is one of the most talented employees I have ever had. He is an AMAZING graphic designer. Anything I give him he goes all in 100% and does a great job. He is very soft-spoken and kind, a giant teddy bear. He has worked for us for roughly 5-6 years now. His wife, Elena, is also a graphic designer and worked for me in the past for several years. They are an amazing couple. They have two young boys. He lives in the city of Nikolaev. The fighting is creeping up on his city so he had to say goodbye to his wife and children, they are headed to Romania in the care of one of our other employees, Doru. Some of the funds will be going directly to Alexey and his family in Romania to help them get by.
Lungu Doru – Doru is an amazing and true Christian, even a pastor at his church. He has worked for Elemerce for several years and is a great programmer. He lives in Romania and has devoted all his additional labor, time, and money to help the refugees that are pouring into Romania. He has driven several of them to Germany, housed them, fed them, and more. Some of the funds collected will go to Doru so that he can be empowered to help more refugees as they continue to arrive.
Maksym Dubyna – Max has worked for me for at least 10 years, probably more. I would have to go look up records to find out when I first worked with him. He is an amazing programmer and lives in Eastern Ukraine where the fighting first started. They lost their home and are not sure if they can ever go back. He had to evacuate with his family (wife and two children) right before a major surgery. He has a big heart and I feel for him and his family and what they have had to go through.
Nastia Brailko – This is my adopted sister’s biological sister in Ukraine. They are a family of 5. Their 16-year-old son has cerebral palsy and is in a wheelchair. Luckily, they were able to flee last week to Poland but have had a hard time finding a place to stay. My family is trying to get paperwork approved for them to come to Utah but it is a complicated process. I was not able to get a photo of them yet but if I do get one I will post.
At least for me, it is nice to know where donations go to that I make. After we have distributed funds I will request all of them to try to post a short video or some photos of the food they buy, lodging they find, etc. with the help of the funds we raise. I know they will appreciate it.
At least for me, it is nice to know where donations go to that I make. After we have distributed funds I will request all of them to try to post a short video or some photos of the food they buy, lodging they find, etc. with the help of the funds we raise. I know they will appreciate it.
If you feel so inclined you are welcome to share this with others.
- Eric Morgan, President, Elemerce
