Tetyana Sakharova said she could not just watch what was happening on the news and do nothing to help her family members, friends and the people of Ukraine.

“It is very bad there now, the bombing is bad. My father, Yaroslav, and my brother Vladimir, who has a family, are not leaving. They are staying to help,” the Albrightsville woman said.

Sakharova said she talks with her father and brother every day, and they tell her what is happening is much worse than one could ever imagine. She is worried she will not be able to call every day because her phone bill is now in the hundreds of dollars, and that has only been since the assault on Ukraine began.

Reaching out to Jim Thorpe Area School District, Sakharova contacted school parents and community members to help to start a collection of needed things they could ship to Ukraine to help all the displaced and homeless Ukrainians, she explained.

“So they need so much. We tell people no clothing, but they are in need of medical supplies, blankets, pills and over-the-counter medicines. Also great need for baby formula and baby food, but for right now we have enough diaper stations,” she said

On Saturday, Sakharova along with some of the volunteers, went in to Philadelphia to arrange shipping of the first load of donations. The nonprofit organization that is helping with the shipping and seeing it arrives in the correct place is the New World Association, 9857 Bustleton Ave., Philadelphia, 19115. People can send donations to the organization to offset shipping costs. Note that the check is for “Shipping to Ukraine.”

“The donations, mostly over-the-counter medicines, are shipped directly to a sanatorium inside the city of Truskavec, and the remaining shipment goes to an orphanage house in Boruslav. Both cities are in Lviv Region, Ukraine,” she said.

On Monday evening, Sakharova texted, “Early this morning we shipped 2,500 pounds of supplies for Ukraine’s people.”

The volunteers from the Penn Kidder Elementary, along with Sakharova are planning to send another shipment next week to an orphanage house in Ukraine and another hospital in Lviv.

Sakharova is planning to set up more collection sites.

A bake sale is planned at 10 a.m. Sunday at Hazle Park Meats and Groceries, Pine Point Plaza, Albrightsville.

When asked if there was anything else people could do to help she said, “Pray for them. That is all we can do.”