In the digital world, a blue check shows legitimacy and verified authenticity. It was this idea that Hollywood actor Liev Schreiber to co-found BlueCheck Ukraine, an organization that identifies, vets, and amplifies organizations providing life-saving aid and other critical humanitarian work on the ground in Ukraine.

In April, Liev visited Ukraine to meet with some of the organizations doing the most to help the people, and it was during this visit that he met Kidsave’s Angels of Hope. Liev spoke about meeting Kidsave Ukraine leader Pavlo Shulha and the Angels of Hope at this weekend’s BlueCheck Ukraine fundraising event.

“When I met Pavlo, I deemed him ‘The Real Ray Donovan,’ because he’s so brave and stoic,” said Liev. “When I met with him, he did share a story with me that made him cry. There was this kid in Culver City who wanted to support Pavlo, so he had a bake sale and raised $68 and sent it to him. Sharing that story made Pavlo Shulha cry, and I think that shows the kind of person he is.”

Kidsave Co-Founder and CEO Randi Thompson was welcomed as a guest speaker at the event, and she shared about Kidsave’s diligent humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.

“If you told me seven months ago that I’d be speaking about rescue and aid efforts in Ukraine, I have said, ‘No way’,” Thompson began. “If you told me that Kidsave, the organization I co-founded more than two decades ago, would be one the first responders in this Ukrainian crisis, I would have said, ‘Impossible.’”

Thompson went on to explain that pre-war, Kidsave was not known as a humanitarian aid organization, it was founded to be a champion for children. “We exist to help older, forgotten kids—the ones in the shadows in foster care and orphanages,” said Thompson. “We give them a voice and choice, introduce them to the community as unique, resilient, and worthy of the love of family.”

It was this mission to help older kids in care find safe and loving families that brought Kidsave to Ukraine six years ago.

“In 2016, we started working in Kyiv, helping 700 orphaned teens prepare for jobs and life through corporate and individual mentoring,” explained Thompson. “Then, in 2018, we started working in Mykolaiv and Kherson, to move older children living in orphanages into Ukrainian families. By January of this year, we had found families for 144 children. Our program was so successful, we had plans to expand to six more regions. On February 24, our plans took a sharp turn.”

When the war in Ukraine began, Thompson knew Kidsave had to act. “We immediately poured all our resources into helping the children and families in our programs to safety. We spent our entire annual budget for Ukraine in the first 10 days. But we knew we couldn’t stop there. We kept going, rescuing as many children and families as possible.”

Within the first month of rescues, Kidsave evacuated nearly 9,000 people and began to distribute whatever medical supplies and humanitarian aid we could source. Now, almost seven months into this conflict, Kidsave has rescued over 27,000 people and delivered over 642 tons of humanitarian aid.

“Kidsave is committed for the long haul –to help rebuild Ukraine by supporting children and families,” said Thompson. “In the midst of this war, as we continue our rescues and provide aid, we are planning for the future.”

Thompson then shared a big announcement: Kidsave will open a training center in Ukraine, a safe place where orphaned children and potential families can meet and connect. In the last week, this dream is one step closer to becoming reality.

“We were just gifted land in western Ukraine that could be the future site of this center,” said Thompson. “On that land, we will plant the seeds of new Ukraine. Through this center we will help restore and build families, train professionals on trauma therapy and our models, and provide a safe place for children in transition.”

Kidsave’s goal is to have the center operational within a year, but Thompson expressed that this will be a big project that will require at least $500,000 for the initial construction phase. Her goal is to employ local workers and contractors and purchase as much of the materials within Ukraine as possible to bolster the economy.

You can learn more about Kidsave’s work in Ukraine by visiting www.kidsave.org/standwithukraine/.

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