When Whitney Luckett decided to sponsor a Ukrainian refugee family last summer, she had no idea she would find an even deeper connection with a like-minded entrepreneur and partner to start a new nonprofit. Although she wanted to help, the Colorado Springs business owner had no clue she would be leading an effort to provide heaters, generators and aid to people in war-torn Ukraine. But that’s exactly what she and Yana Malyk are accomplishing through their new nonprofit Ukraine Power.
The connection began when Luckett and her husband, Marc, explored Ukrainian sponsorship organizations and ways to help seek safety from the conflict. After receiving thousands of WhatsApp messages from potential families fleeing Ukraine, the Lucketts were paired with Malyk and her two daughters. The family arrived at Denver International Airport at midnight on July 21, 2022.
Despite sponsoring the family and bringing them into their home, Luckett knew relatively little about Malyk. The more she got to know her, the more she realized how incredible Malyk is.
Before the war in Ukraine, Malyk owned seven businesses ranging from a women’s health clinic to a travel agency to real estate ownership. She also worked as a special assistant to the governor of the Luhansk Oblast, or province, during the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea to help bring back Ukrainians to the Luhansk region.
In the fall, Russian strategy pivoted to attacking Ukraine’s infrastructure. Luhansk lies on Ukraine’s eastern border with Russia, and the attacks decimated 90% of the region’s public utilities, according to local estimates. Malyk could not simply stand by. Luckett was more than willing to help.
“I said, what can we do?” Luckett says, “How about we sponsor more families? I will find new homes. And Yana said, ‘Whitney, that’s not the best response here. What we should try to do is keep Ukrainians alive in Ukraine.’”
The brutal attacks on Ukraine’s substations, distribution grids and high-voltage power lines have left an estimated 10 million Ukrainians without power or heat in the midst of a harsh winter. While Ukrainian power engineers work tirelessly to restore power, their efforts have not been able to keep up with the continued Russian missile attacks.
Because Malyk worked with Luhansk’s regional government previously, she reached out to the office to form a plan of action.
“Yana, within two phone calls, can get to whoever she wants to talk to in the Ukrainian government,” Luckett says. “So she called up the office and just said, ‘What do you need?’ Literally the next day, the deputy governor of Luhansk sent us back a spreadsheet, two pages worth with every single town on it and exactly what they needed. It was gas generators, diesel generators, propane heaters, electric heaters. It was something like over 2,000 items that they needed.”
Fortunately, Luckett is well versed in global supply chain management as the owner of Simko North America, a raw materials supply chain and logistics company specializing in natural rubber. Combined with Malyk’s business savvy and determination to help her homeland, the two women were prepared to address Ukraine’s dire need for resources. Ukraine Power was incorporated on Nov. 16, and they filed paperwork to be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on Dec. 5.
The organization’s mission is focused on getting generators, heaters and other power supplies to those who need them most in the Luhansk region. They have raised nearly $100,000 to date. Within the first 45 days, they delivered 48 generators, 70 propane tanks, 130 heaters, 130 rechargeable lamps, 40 large-capacity power banks and dozens of tools and supplies for community charging stations.
Luckett and Malyk now hope to take the message and mission of Ukraine Power national. Along with TV appearances along Colorado’s Front Range, the pair recently spoke to the Rotary Club in Petaluma, California, and they are scheduled to speak to the Colorado Legislature in late February.
Ukraine Power’s current efforts are focused on the immediacy of providing heat and power to the Ukrainian people during winter. But for the future, Luckett and Malyk have been discussing medium-range goals of aiding orphanages and families taking in orphans in Ukraine.
“There’s a really big push to try to keep Ukrainian kids in Ukraine, and Yana wants to be a part of that,” Luckett says. “We’ve recently been talking with the department that’s in charge of orphans and orphanages. Right now we are working with the governments both in Kyiv and in the Luhansk region to locate these families taking in six, eight, 10 kids and find out what they need.”
As a longer-term project, Luckett and Malyk hope eventually to expand Ukraine Power’s efforts into rebuilding Ukraine’s infrastructure. According to The Brookings Institution, appraisals dating back to the summer of 2022 estimate the costs of rebuilding Ukraine to run anywhere between $349 billion to $750 billion. In the years and decades to come, Ukraine Power hopes to expand its support to wounded children, warriors and survivors, as well as resettlement and infrastructure.
For now, the women behind Ukraine Power are doing what they can to help, one generator and heater at a time.
“Raising money with urgency is the greatest challenge Ukraine Power faces right now as the people of Luhansk face the ravages of winter,” Malyk says in a press release. “I have experienced the generosity of Americans and hope we can bring that energy and compassion directly to Ukrainian people.”
Want to Help Ukraine?
Learn more about Ukraine Power at ukrainepower.org. Donations can be given there, as well as Venmo @UkrainePower and the Ukraine Power GoFundMe.
Read More
The Hoofbeats of Polo Return to Colorado Springs
The 30 Best Restaurants in Colorado Springs
Renowned Performance Artist Eiko Otake at the FAC
