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'Turn hell into happiness': how an emigrant from Kyiv helps to make prostheses for the Ukrainian military

'14.11.2022'

Ksenia Kirillova

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Ukrainian Oleksandr Rubtsov moved to the United States in 2015 and worked successfully in real estate before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Everything changed on February 24: the very next day, Alexander, leaving his wife and two children in Miami, flew to the Polish city of Krakow with a group of like-minded volunteers to help the Ukrainians affected by the war as much as possible.

Since then, Alexander and his friends have continued to volunteer. A few months ago they started a charity kind deaths. Its goal is to help organize prosthetics for people who lost limbs during the war, primarily Ukrainian soldiers. About how he manages to return people to a full life, Alexander spoke in an interview with Forum Daily.

Prosthesis for Sasha

Initially, the volunteers were engaged in the evacuation of refugees from Ukraine: first they were taken to Krakow, and then distributed throughout the European Union.

«We rented three buses with 49 seats each, which took people from the frontline zone to the west of Ukraine. Volunteers took people from near Kyiv, from Bucha, Sumy and other cities. Especially for refugees, we organized overnight stays in Lvov and Vinnitsa, since crossing the border was not fast. Then we met people after crossing the Polish border and tried to accommodate them in Krakow, providing them with medicines and clothes", - says Alexander.

Oleksandr Rubtsov admits that the volunteers did not risk going to the front line itself or to the occupied territory, but in the first months of the war, nevertheless, they came under fire even in Kyiv. For some time the buses left with an escort, then adapted to change the route. But, despite all the risks, trips were made daily.

«Literally in the first two days, we created a Telegram chat in which we coordinated all actions, from the delivery of people in Kyiv to the place of evacuation to the right bank, which was also not easy under shelling, to their deployment in the European Union. We brought together volunteers from different countries, and our volunteers not only accepted refugees in their countries, but also explained what assistance and benefits they could receive from the government", - says Alexander.

The project lasted two months, and during this time, the volunteers, according to Alexander, did not refuse anyone. People with disabilities, cancer patients, refugees with pets, and everyone who needed help were taken out of Ukraine.

«Once in our chat appeared Get in touch about a nine year old girl Sasha Filipchuk from Gostomel, whose stepfather was killed during an attempt to evacuate the family. The girl herself was wounded, and for several days she hid with her mother in one of the basements of Bucha. We helped a little with coordination by contacting the defense and the SBU. As a result, the girl was saved and operated on, but, unfortunately, her arm had to be amputated. Then, after the evacuation, our volunteers found this girl in Italy and, as best they could, supported her family. Our volunteers and I met Sasha and her mother Yulia twice there. In one of the conversations with Yulia, I volunteered to help with a prosthesis for Sasha. This is how the idea of ​​the prosthetics project was born.", Alexander recalls.

Photo from the personal archive of Alexander Rubtsov

Home for the Wounded

According to him, as a result, everything ended well for Sasha. The child was taken under personal guardianship by the spouse of the Ukrainian president Elena Zelenskaya, and with her efforts, the girl was quickly fitted with a prosthesis. However, Alexander gained important experience, and most importantly, he got excited about the idea of ​​helping other people like Sasha.

Returning to America, Alexander Rubtsov moved to New York and agreed with three local clinics to accept people from Ukraine. American doctors have agreed to give discounts to visitors, and even take them out of the queue. However, even with such concessions, prostheses were very expensive. Volunteers say the cost of each varies from a few thousand to $100, depending on the components of the prosthesis, parts, the length of the amputated body part, and other costs. On average, according to Alexander, a prosthesis can cost $15 or more.

«In addition, there are additional costs in the form of transportation and accommodation of people. We also looked for donors through our acquaintances, and simply sent letters to clinics. Fortunately, we have received feedback from some clinics and individual doctors, and are now collaborating with them. We attract donations, as well as invest our own money that we earned in previous years', he shares.

In New York, Alexander at first did not even have housing. He admits that he simply could not afford to spend several hundred dollars on a hotel every day if that money could go to someone's prosthesis. As a result, the man had to huddle with friends and sleep on an air mattress.

«Fortunately, my wife fully supports me and takes an active part in the work of our charitable foundation.", says the philanthropist.

On the subject: Photo exhibition about Mariupol opens in New York

Just the other day, Oleksandr managed to find a house for rent where he can live on his own, as well as accommodate Ukrainian soldiers who come for prosthetics and rehabilitation. Prior to this, the wounded lived in the families of members of the Ukrainian diaspora.

«The door of this house will always be open, and any members of the diaspora can come there at any time.”, Alexander promises.

"Already cycling"

Kind deeds cooperates with several rehabilitation centers in Ukraine, and it is they who help to select candidates for sending to the United States from among the wounded military personnel. The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, in turn, helps with the preparation of documents. The Ukrainian Ministry of Health and the Deputy Minister personally play an important role in the removal of the wounded. Irina Mikichak. It is the ministry that provides ambulances to take the military from various places to the Ukrainian border.

So far, the organization has managed to help two soldiers: a 23-year-old Viktor Nesterenko and 35 year old Anton Domaransky.

«They got prostheses already on the fifth day after arriving in America, and a couple of days later the guys were already riding bicycles. Now they show simply incredible results, and they walk almost without limping. Victor served in the Marine Corps, and now he hopes to rest at home for some time. But Anton has been fighting in the Ukrainian army since 2014, and hopes to return to the front soon. In the end, there are different troops and different tasks, for example, control of some kind of equipment, for which it is not necessary to be in perfect physical shape", says the philanthropist.

Victor rides a bike. Photo from the personal archive of Alexander Rubtsov

According to Oleksandr, rehabilitation takes an average of 3-4 weeks, and volunteers from the Ukrainian diaspora also actively participate in it.

«Every day the rehabilitation specialist teaches children to walk. But besides this, help is constantly needed to pick up patients from home and take them to the clinic, bring them to rehabilitation, and so on. Volunteers are needed for all this, and we will gratefully accept the help.", says the philanthropist.

In the near future, the organization plans to open its representative office in Poland and agree on prosthetics with local clinics. According to Alexander, this will help to multiply the number of people who can be helped. The volunteer admits: the queue for prosthetics is thousands of people, and their number is increasing with each new Russian shelling. So far, only a few have been able to help, but Alexander does not lose heart.

«Every person who manages to be brought back to a full life, and even every meeting with like-minded people in New York, simply inspires me. In fact, what we are doing is converting the pain and hell that people go through in war into human happiness. Realizing this, I do not feel tired at all, and I am ready to do even more.“, he assures.

Alexander recalls that his organization is very dependent on donations. The number of donors directly determines how many people volunteers will be able to return to a full life. You can donate for prosthetics here.

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