In response to a request for humanitarian aid from the Mayor of Brovary, Ukraine, Igor Sapozhko, the Brovary, Ukraine Relief Fund was launched March 4 to raise funds for medicine, medical supplies, food, generators, sleeping cots, and emergency shelter. Rockford has enjoyed a Sister City relationship with Brovary since 1995. The Brovary Relief effort is a collaborative effort of the City of Rockford, Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Kids Around the World, and the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois.

Hundreds of individuals, families, and organizations have donated in support of this effort through the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) and Kids Around the World (KATW). As of today, CFNIL has raised over $61,000, with Kids Around the World raising over $100,000 from donors throughout northern Illinois and across the country. 

Kids Around the World (KATW), a Rockford-based organization that partners with hundreds of groups and 30,000+ volunteers across the US each year to provide food, playgrounds, and spiritual development for children in poverty- and war-torn foreign cities, built its first two playgrounds 28 years ago in Brovary. KATW’s longstanding relationship with partners on the ground in Ukraine and across the European continent has facilitated the purchase and safe transport of lifesaving supplies directly to Brovary. 

Diesel generators purchased with funds raised have already been delivered to Brovary. Nine pallets of medical supplies have been purchased and delivered to the Brovary hospital. Additionally, over 270,000 meals packed by Kids Around the World and their partners in Texas and Oregon are being sent to Rockford Airport where a Senator International 747 plane will transport them to the Romanian/Ukrainian border. This plane transport has been provided at no cost thanks to Senator International. 

Monetary donations continue to be accepted through Kids Around the World and the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois. To learn more and make a secure online donation, visit www.cfnil.org/burf or www.kidsaroundtheworld.com. Checks may also be made out to either organization with memo or attn. to Brovary Relief and mailed or dropped off.