A Russian-speaking chef suffered serious burns during a fire in a restaurant: friends are raising money for treatment

A migrant from Ukraine, Alexander Nazarov comes from a family of cooks. He spent 27 years honing his craft, starting as a humble waiter and rising to executive chef at The Gallery restaurant in New Jersey. Unfortunately, an accident left him unable to work and he now desperately needs help in treatment and recovery.

The chef served meals to celebrities, cooked for the monastery on Mount Athos, and tirelessly helped the community with his culinary talents. However, on March 8, tragedy occurred. While presenting a dish that required setting a wooden board on fire, an accident occurred that left Alex with severe third- and fourth-degree burns covering 80% of his face, significant damage to his hands, and loss of vision in one eye.

He is currently receiving emergency treatment at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center, where doctors are working tirelessly to treat his injuries. Alex's road to recovery will be long and difficult. He faces months of rehabilitation, numerous surgeries and the difficult task of starting a new career to support his family.

Medical Update 3/25 from Alex Nazarov on Vimeo.

“Thank you all very much. Big human bow. I will never forget your good deeds. I understand how many good people there are around me, how many people responded,” Alex says in his video. He has been in the hospital for two weeks now and has undergone several skin graft operations.

Financial help

The restaurant management cited the lack of insurance, so the entire process of treatment and rehabilitation fell on the shoulders of his family. This threatens their stability and ability to afford the care Alex so desperately needs. His wife, who is unable to drive due to an accident in the past, tries her best to be by his side during this critical time.

On the subject: A Russian-speaking immigrant underwent a complex liver transplant operation and needs financial assistance

They need money just to survive: for food, utility bills, car maintenance, car insurance, home insurance, and much more. That's why they turn to the migrant community for support.

The goal is to raise funds to cover Alex's medical expenses, including emergency care, psychiatry sessions to overcome the trauma he experienced, rehabilitation and plastic surgery. In addition, the goal is to ease the financial burden on his family, which is going through this difficult period.

Archpriest Sergius Lukyanov, rector of the Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky in Howell, New Jersey opened a collection on the Givesendgo portal. The goal is to raise $270 ($000 raised so far). If her fundraising goal is exceeded, Alex hopes to return to the burn center and support other patients, including children from Ukraine, being treated at the same hospital.