Our Story

Ukraine Defenders is a multi-national group of individuals who are using their backgrounds, skills, and networks to assist Ukrainians defend their homeland from the attacks from Russia.  After the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, several friends who worked together and knew each other in Ukraine immediately decided to try and help.  One of our founders who lived and worked in Kyiv with a background in security began to raise money to purchase Individual First Aid Kits (IFAKs) for civilians repelling invading forces.  He connected with another security colleague, and they began to formulate a plan to raise money and deliver critical items to keep civilians alive and make them more efficient at resisting the Russian invasion.  Due to his work in Ukraine, he also had good connections with his former colleagues in Ukraine who are involved in Civil Defense (non-governmental and non-military civilian groups organized to protect their cities and towns) and who quickly established a logistical operation to deliver items into Kyiv which was under siege at the time.

Within days we raised thousands of dollars from individual donations for medical supplies. Soon thereafter, the small team started the complex task of delivering the first 100 IFAKs.  Our team member flew from a country near the Black Sea to the U.S. to connect with the growing team in the U.S., and then to Europe in just two days.  After an exhausting trip, he joined his teacher and her husband and they piled into a car along with 100 IFAKs and set off to meet a new team member from Poland.  After a long trip, the American, along with the Ukrainian, and a British national joined our Polish colleague and set off for the border with Ukraine to meet the team working in Ukraine.  Truly an international civilian effort. After many hours, the team made it to the border in the middle of the night and met our Ukrainian team who took the equipment into Ukraine.  After the Ukrainian team departed toward Lviv, there was a Russian strike on a Ukrainian base located near the road where the Ukrainian team was driving.  They were forced to abandon the vehicle and hide in the basement of a building for several hours.  Thankfully, no one from our team was injured and they continued all the way to Kyiv.  The first batch of equipment had been successfully delivered.  

The team in Ukraine had recruited several colleagues who were skilled in Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) training.  This type of medical training is critical in keeping trauma victims alive long enough to reach secondary care.  TCCC can be used by the victim themselves, or by those responding to the scene first.  The trainers quickly got to doing what they know best and organized training for Civil Defense and especially those working at critical checkpoints in Kyiv.  In the first few days, they trained more than 500 civilians on how to use the IFAKs that were now posted at each checkpoint and carried by Civil Defense members.  The Ukrainian team also risked their lives to deliver IFAKs to Civil Defense units on the outskirts of Kyiv.  Those units were involved in defending the cities of Bucha and Irpin and were eventually retaken by Ukrainian forces. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine Defenders team members back in the U.S. began working on the logistics, documentation, and registration of the current 501c3 humanitarian organization that exists today. Ukraine Defenders is a non-profit dedicated to providing humanitarian relief to the people or Ukraine. Our team of highly trained, specialized professionals deliver life saving care and resiliency training to people impacted by the ongoing conflict.

Our original group continues to deliver more IFAKs, medical equipment, communication platforms, and other critically needed items, directly to our team members in Ukraine.   Our effort is specifically targeted to get maximum results where we can have the most significant impact.  We aim to put specific aid into the hands of the civilian defenders of Ukraine.  Additionally, our goal is to provide a window for our donors to view exactly how their donations are being used and to provide a connection between them and the defenders that they are helping.  -M & the Team

Board of Directors

• Catey Cohen
• Benjamin Wallace
• Dan Lucking
• Jonathan Wallace