How We're Helping
Our Approach: Ukrainian Relief Mission Charitable Corporation (URMCC) has spent the time since its inception gathering on-the-ground facts in order to shape our mission. From this planning period our team has developed mission priorities and generated support.
We share them with you now:
Moments of Dignity: URMCC is committed to having an on-the-ground team in Poland to consistently interact with refugees, government officials, and other care organizations. From these touch points, there will be opportunities to provide moments of dignity to refugee lives.
Ongoing Advocacy: URMCC will provide the following for those refugees who have lost everything in Ukraine, and want to stay in Poland. This unfortunately is not an unusual set of circumstances.
Housing: Small hotels, homes or apartments to rent or accepted as a donation. We will undertake small-living-quarter outfitting (refrigerator, beds, other small improvements).
Citizen Status: Our people will bring refugees to government offices to file for one year of residency. This allows for:
• Personal Polish ID
• Work permit
• Access to schools
• Access to health care
• Small stipend from the government
• URMCC personnel shall advocate and assist in refugees having access to all the above, as well as practical community integration and assistance with finding employment.
• Safety checks: We will do weekly (if not more) wellness checks on all refuges under our advocacy umbrella.
Our June Visit to Poland
Moments of Dignity
Supported efforts with a Baptist church in Ostroda to fund kids’ activities for 50 Ukrainian children. Activities include:
• Workshops; clay, wood and other
• Day trips by bus, train and boat
• Funded emergency dental care for refugees living at the church annex
• 100 laptops donated so that children can continue their schooling online
• Ongoing immediate support for single families that arrive in Ostroda with nothing
• Funded essentials for 32 refugees living in Ostroda at a local hotel
• Many of these people only had one set of clothing
• Repaired a leaking roof in a home housing 28 refugees in Rzeszow
Advocacy
• Rented a nine-room hotel in Pisz to house 20 refugees
• Rented a country house in Pisz to house 18 refugees
• Rented a number of hostel rooms to house 18 refugees
• Rented an in-town house in Ostroda to house 20 refugees
• Rented a 28-room hotel (Hotel Promenada) in Ostroda to accept 60 refugees
• Hotel has a 90-seat restaurant that we are exploring opening and staffing with Ukrainian workers
Our April Visit to Poland
Moments of Dignity
• Purchased an extra-large refrigerator for a donated house in Rzeszow with 30 refugees
• Purchased two beds for refugees in Mazury
• Purchased two large cupboards to store and hang clothes for refugees in Mazury
• Purchased 70 backpacks for students in Mazury
• Purchased a washing machine for an apartment complex for refugee housing in Mazury
• Purchased clothing for 16 children who arrived in Mazury with one change of clothes
• Purchased an apartment refrigerator for a refugee family in Mazury that did not have one
Ongoing advocacy
• Rented a small hotel in Mazury for six months, creating safe housing for 27 refugees. We have found refugees who want to stay in Poland, and we will be housing them in the coming weeks.
• Population apartments sourced by local government agency in Ostroda to house 29 refugees. By 5/1/22 refugees will be transported to Mazury to begin their new life!
