Don’t just be frightened or worried about Ukraine. Do something to help.
We all have clothing, towels, shoes or blankets that are new or slightly used. Or maybe some of us don’t but can spare a few bucks to buy something for the growing number of refugees seeking safe haven in Poland and other neighboring countries.
The nonprofit Give Back Box strives to be a bridge between the haves and have-nots of the world. It is an easy way to share your extras with someone in need.
I learned about it through a neighbor who asked all of us on the block to contribute on behalf of Ukraine. Of course I did, but I also looked into the organization to learn how my slightly worn pair of tennis shoes might help someone fleeing Kyiv.
Thursday morning, I placed a call to Poland, where Monika Wiela was visiting family and welcoming the first shipment of goods sent through Give Back Box.
Wiela, a Polish-American businesswoman, started Give Back Box in 2012. Since then it has shipped over 1 million boxes to people in need.
In a phone conversation from a family member’s home in central Poland, Wiela talked about how the nonprofit came about and how it is now helping war-torn families stay warm and comfortable as they cope with fear and uncertainty.
Americans are asked to fill a box, any box, with new or slightly used items. In the case of Ukraine, what’s needed are mom-size sweaters, hoodies appropriate for elderly men and children’s jackets.
Stuff your box, then simply print a free label from givebackbox.com and drop that box at your nearest UPS center.
Right now, shipping containers are being filled in the Chicago area, including the suburbs. One arrived this week in Poland, where volunteers are now sorting, separating and delivering items to the border.
Typically, Wiela said, it takes three weeks to send a container. With enough cash donations from partnering companies and the public, she said, they can send the materials by air, which is quicker.
“It’s easy. Anybody can participate,” she said.
Wiela started the organization after an encounter with a homeless man on Michigan Avenue. Then a Chicago resident, she said she realized many Americans have more stuff than they need. She also realized that many wanted to help those less fortunate but weren’t sure how to do it.
Give Back Box now partners with more than 150 charities, including children’s organizations, animal groups and domestic violence shelters, to channel help where it is needed when it is needed. Givers can choose who they want to help.
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“Really anything that can be shipped, we can find a home for,” she said.
Right now, the focus is on Ukraine, she said.
“I’m American and Polish. I feel doubly responsible to help here because we in the United States are so fortunate,” she said. “For a long time, we’ve had no wars at home. No one attacks us.
“As a Polish person, this is my happening to my neighbor,” she added. “I know people here (in Poland). I can help very easily. I know the language.”
And, she said, “If we don’t help Ukraine, we can be next. This can very easily escalate to all of Europe. I hope not. For the first few days, we thought it would calm down. But it’s not, it’s getting worse.”
Wiela said her family and friends in Poland are very worried.
“They want to know what Americans say and think about all of this,” she said.
Already 1.5 million people have arrived in Poland, and the number of refugees is growing, she said.
Poles, she said, are also worried about nuclear threats and that the war will spread across Europe.
“People worry here a lot,” she said. “We need to do something.”
Really anything that can be shipped, we can find a home for.
“Ukrainians are fighting for all of Europe right now,” she said. “It’s good for the soldiers to know that their families are safe and being taken care of.”
Donating new of slightly used items of comfort are a way to do that, she said.
Give Back Box partners with many well-known brands, including Amazon, Overstock and REI, to help cover the costs of shipping. But anyone is welcome to donate money toward that cost as well.
“Everyone can do something,” she said.
Doing so might elevate your own mood, she added.
“Helping is the best therapy for any unhappiness. Try it and you will feel so much better,” she said.
Donna Vickroy is an award-winning reporter, editor and columnist who worked for the Daily Southtown for 38 years.