Astronaut Scott Kelly teams up with Ukraine-Heart to raise money for ambulances in Ukraine.
The efforts to rebuild Ukraine, restore its infrastructure and communities must begin now. Ukraine-Heart, my team of fellow writers on Medium and I, teamed up with astronaut Scott Kelly to aid his fundraising effort providing ambulances for Ukraine.
We believe that rebuilding Ukraine will help restore a sense of community far beyond the country’s own borders. We want to help Ukraine to get back on its feet as fast as possible. Therefore, we have put our heads together and we came up with the idea to raise funds for an ambulance for Ukraine in support of United24 and Scott Kelly’s project “Ambulances to support Ukraine.”
But who could better introduce the project than famous astronaut Scott Kelly himself?
“When President Zelenskyy asked me to be an Ambassador for United24, I accepted with confidence because I knew that teamwork would get the job done and fulfill the critical need of ambulances for Ukraine. When I travelled there, I saw the resilience of the Ukrainian people and the confidence of their leadership. This trip was the fifth most inspirational and meaningful trip of my life and that’s only because I have flown to space four times. The Ukrainian people need all our help. We are so close to finishing this urgent mission for Ukraine and this volunteer group of writers on Medium, Ukraine-heart, will provide a timely boost to see us finish what we started, and then continue with whatever else is needed next to ensure Ukraine’s survival as a free nation”.
Scott sends a clear message; Ukraine needs our help now more than ever
As director and editor of Ukraine-Heart, I fully agree with him. This mission here on earth, isn’t just important for Ukraine, but for communities around the world. In this war which has already lasted for more than a year, much has been destroyed: children have been hurt or even killed, hospitals and other medical equipment were targeted with mortar fire and missile strikes, and an entire cities such as Mariupol have been completely devastated. Gas, water, telecoms connections and farming equipment fell prey to these strategic bombing campaign conducted by Russia.
To restore Ukraine our rebuilding efforts must start today
The country needs a functioning medical system with well-equipped ambulances. With this idea in mind our small team approached world famous astronaut Scott Kelly and we are happy to announce that we will support him and his effort to raise funds so that he can fulfill his mission.
But we cannot do any of that alone. Scott Kelly and the Ukraine-Heart team has a clear-cut goal to fund this ambulance in 90 days. We believe that by helping Ukraine, you won’t just impact the conflict within the region; we hope that by doing something good for Ukraine we as a world-community may begin to mend the many divisions that have widened over recent years. as well.
It has been a little over year now since the full-scale invasion began
However, it has been almost 10 years since the war had started in 2014. Still, we cannot tire in our efforts to raise funds and raise awareness for Ukraine. We cannot look away from the suffering that is still a daily reality for those Ukrainian citizens who are directly affected by the war. As the Ukrainian people continue their efforts to rebuild their country, the rest of us must help to give this community back some of its agency. Sometimes a feeling of being overwhelmed by the sheer complexity of the situation may set in — it sure does so for me. But this fundraiser is an active way to do something good that will immediately help Ukraine recover faster from the horrors of this war.
Additionally, these ambulances are built directly in Ukraine, so this will help Ukraine’s economy immediately as well
Once the project has ended, there will be something tangible, something visible that makes us all see then, that the donated funds are being put to good use. I hope we can count on your support.
My vision for this project is that it should be seen as an invitation to everyone around the world
But it is also a message to Ukraine, that our solidarity is global and not just local. I live in Europe, so I am much “closer” to the war than many of my readers. However, this war affects all of us. We as a world community share some core ideas of human decency and dignity.
In my opinion helping others always benefits both sides. We all share this bond of reciprocity. We all sit in the same boat. Once we look past our differences and what divides us, we will soon realize that we all have much more in common than it may appear. With this project, we can show how vibrant this community is, and that it can make a real difference. The world will not be destroyed by those that are doing evil, but by those watching them and doing nothing.
That is where you can all come in and become an active as part of something bigger
Together we could make the world a little bit better like this. I will give Scott Kelly the word again. He has some more things to say about why this project is worthy of our support.
By donating to this cause, we can achieve this goal and help restore some hope to the Ukrainian people. Our team will be putting out articles on Medium over the coming weeks and months with updates on fundraising efforts, wisdom and insights from Scott Kelly, and a look behind the scenes at ambulance aid in Ukraine. So, keep your eyes and hearts open.
Thank you for your help. You can click on the donation icon below. Your support is much appreciated and thank you for helping to heal Ukraine, so that hopefully we can mend communities worldwide as well. I would like to give Scott Kelly the last word, as he has some more details about the project and about his own personal history with ambulances.
“When I was young, I worked in emergency medical care and as an ambulance driver and saw with my own eyes how timely medical care can save people’s lives. Later, when I was already an astronaut, I performed the role of crew medical officer. Ukrainian doctors today are real heroes who do miracles every day in incredibly difficult and dangerous conditions.
I consider it my duty to support Ukraine, which is defending democracy from Russian aggression. I am also the first to make a monetary contribution of USD 65,000 for the purchase of an ambulance through President Zelenskyy’s United24 platform. I really hope that freedom-loving people around the world will join me in this fundraising!” Scott Kelly, ambassador of United 24
Astronaut Scott Kelly, four-times Commander of the International Space Program, has endorsed Ukraine-Heart. We are an online initiative, of Medium writers and others, to help Scott Kelly complete his mission on earth to raise money for ambulances for Ukraine. When he reaches the commitment he made to President Zelenskyy, Ukraine-Heart will continue to support and promote these initiatives. Donate Now
Source (statement from Kelly’s page)
