New York charity sends Ukrainian soldiers, civilians bulletproof vests

A Buffalo, New York-based businesswoman is amassing bulletproof vests by way of her charity to aid guard Ukrainian soldiers and civilians who are supplying humanitarian aid.

Considering the fact that Russian forces invaded Ukraine at the finish of February, Lydia Dominick has been doing the job all-around the clock with her charity Buffalo Offers to assist troopers preventing in the most unsafe regions of the place, as perfectly as citizens both of those inside of Ukraine and those who have escaped. Dominick begun the charitable effort by working with her small business, Buffalo Balloon Co., to accumulate donations for Ukrainian refugees in have to have.

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Dominick instructed Online News 72h Electronic that her initiatives began right after she observed her pals in Europe making a big difference by collecting and driving provides to the border and having people to security, she claimed. 

“I assumed I can’t do very little in this article, I am heading to enable,” she reported. 

She very first opened the doorways to her business enterprise to accumulate any sort of donation attainable. An inflow of diapers, method, health care provides, socks, hats, mittens, food stuff, blankets and hygiene items came flooding in and inside of four times they have been capable to fill and ship 21 pallets to Europe. 

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Even so, following listening to folks on the floor in Europe, Dominick understood the will need had swiftly improved. 

“It’s no more time diapers, it is really no lengthier apparel. We need to have bulletproof vests,” she mentioned. 

She recalled imagining: “I’m heading to get people. I will not know how, but I’m likely to get all those.”

The target, she states, is to make absolutely sure every single Ukrainian is protected with a vest.

Lydia Dominick at the border of Ukraine and Poland. 
(Lydia Dominick/ Buffalo Gives )

She quickly went on social media to inquire for assistance.

“We had [a] sheriff’s business office, full law enforcement academies bringing in expired vests,” she explained. 

She recalled indicating, “Fantastic, we’ll consider them. They are fighting in T-shirts, we will get whatsoever you have.”

But her initiatives didn’t end there. With an huge generate to enable, she begun purchasing vests with her own funds far too. 

She also began talking to various arms dealers all-around the state and figured out a way to get an International Targeted traffic in Arms Restrictions license, so she could lawfully transportation the vests to Europe. 

The initially donation of vests came in on March 8. Considering that then, she has already collected and purchased far more than 500 vests.

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The vests are personally sent by Dominick and her team to warehouses in Warsaw, Poland, and Lviv, Ukraine, in buy to get them to individuals in will need in a timely method.

Lydia Dominick at the border of Ukraine and Poland. 
(Lydia Dominick/ Buffalo Gives )

During her very first vacation to Poland, Dominick checked 10 luggage filled with 20 bulletproof vests, ballistic helmets, professional medical provides and medication. 

For the duration of her second vacation, this time with added assistance from her family members, she was able to get 62 luggage filled with extra than 160 vests, to Europe. 

They are slated to just take yet another few hundred vests on their third journey this coming Monday.

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United Airlines made available Buffalo Provides 500 lbs of no cost cargo excess weight to fly provides to Europe from New York’s John F. Kennedy Global Airport. 

The charity is however amassing monetary donations, which will go towards paying for vests “and other higher will need merchandise that can be obtained in Poland,” according to its website. 

It is also continue to trying to get cold and allergy medication in tablet type, children’s medicine and clinical provides this sort of as trauma packs and gauze.