Новини / CCRDF Delivers Aids to Sevastopol

CCRDF Delivers Aid to Sevastopol About Ukrainian Naval Vessel

On July 7th, the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund delivered five large crates (skids) of humanitarian aid to the Slavutych, the command vessel of the Ukrainian Navy.

The 1.8 tons of donated medical supplies, valued at over $85,000 are destined for a naval hospital at the ship's home port in Sevastopol, Ukraine. Each summer Sevastopol and other Crimean ports host thousands of children from the regions contaminated by radioactive fallout from the explosion at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant in 1986. Many of these children suffer from cancer and immune deficiencies, which require treatment and long-term screening.

CCRDF held a press conference announcing the humanitarian shipment at Brooklyn's Port Authority Pier 7. The Slavutych arrived in New York City on July 3d to take part in the International Naval Review 2000 and Independence Day celebrations that preceded the OpSail 2000 tall ships festival. The Slavutych was the only military ship from Eastern Europe to participate in the naval review.

Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund is a humanitarian organization established to protect and save the lives of children confronting the human legacy of the world's worst environmental disaster. It serves as an informational, resource-bridge for the United Sates, Ukraine and the world community. Since 1990, CCRDF has organized 25 airlifts and nine sea shipments, delivering more than 1,300 tons of medical aid valued at $45 million dollars to hospitals that provide treatment and screening for children affected by Chornobyl as well as other public health crises facing Ukraine.

According to Commander Volodymyr V. Leschenko, deputy to the Salvutych's commanding officer, the naval vessel's participation was arranged on the level of government-to-government contacts involving the foreign affairs and defense ministers of Ukraine and their U.S. counterparts.

"We are very grateful for your role in providing essential medical treatment, rest and recuperation for these unfortunate children," CCRDF Executive Director Alex Kuzma stated at the press conference. "This shipment is but a small token of our appreciation and we hope that this will be just the first gesture in establishing a long-term partnership with the medical community of Crimea, and Sevastopol in particular."

"At the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund we feel it is our privilege to help the people of Ukraine as they struggle to build a new society based on democratic, free market principles while protecting human rights and cultural diversity," said Kuzma. "The success of this emerging democracy is vital to the long-term security interests of the United States, Europe, and the entire global community."

CCRDF staff met with Ukrainian naval officers to discuss the logistics of the cargo upon its arrival in Sevastopol. The commanders offered their personal assurances that the medical aid would reach its intended recipients and was greatly appreciated. The officers present included the Ukrainian Embassy's Assistant Naval Attaché Serhyi Nychyporenko, Commander Volodymyr Leschenko, and Admiral Ihor Tenukh, one of the founding officers of the Ukrainian navy and also one of the three officers who established the Ukrainian Officer's Union within the Black Sea Fleet in September 1991.

At the press conference, Commander Leschenko officially spoke on behalf of the Slavutych crew and the Ukrainian naval forces and expressed gratitude to the Ukrainian-American community in the United States for all that it has done to help Ukraine. He was pleased to participate in this aid shipment and to be able to help his countrymen. The Slavutych embarked on its return voyage from Brooklyn to Sevastopol on July 9 and is expected to arrive in Ukraine in early August.

CCRDF is presently organizing its 26th humanitarian airlift valued at over $2 million dollars, which will be arriving in Ukraine in August to celebrate the anniversary of Ukraine's independence. Airlifts sent in honor of Independence Day have become a CCRDF tradition.

For further information about Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund, or to make a tax-deductible donation, please write to: CCRDF, 272 Old Short Hills Rd., Short Hills, NJ 07078. Tel: (973) 376-5140.