Help Let's discuss ways in which we can directly help Nessie & other Ukrainian SS members

[Depressed Cat]

I know there are responses scattered across different threads on Ukraine, but let's talk of ways in which we can directly help @Nessie & other Ukrainian SS members on this thread.

While European members would be in the best position to help them in whichever ways they can, I'd also like to know how the rest of us in far flung places across the globe can chip in as well.

@Nessie and all other Ukrainian members, this thread is for you. Please don't hesitate to ask us if you have specific requests. Also, do suggest ideas & ways in which we can help you directly.

Come on, good folks on SS, let's get started! Be creative, think out of the box and come up with suggestions, please.

Note: This is a serious discussion about ways to directly help our fellow members as they face the darkest time of their lives. Please do not, I repeat, do not derail this thread by talking about anything else here. There are other threads for that. I hope moderators keep a close eye on this thread and delete any post that tries to derail this discussion.

 

[Smart No More]

I've been giving this some thought. I had hoped to get meds sent over to Nessie somehow but after reading their post about having to move and take their cats I feel our abilities to help will be limited unless we're able to send funds they can access and perhaps find a sponsor/home for them to go too. Not entirely impossible I guess but does come with the complication of breaking anonymity. Would be great to be able to do something if we can.

 

[callme]

I've been giving this some thought. I had hoped to get meds sent over to Nessie somehow but after reading their post about having to move and take their cats I feel our abilities to help will be limited unless we're able to send funds they can access and perhaps find a sponsor/home for them to go too. Not entirely impossible I guess but does come with the complication of breaking anonymity. Would be great to be able to do something if we can.

Probably not if they are crypto donations? Any decision must be taken as soon as possible for sure. Refugees are piling up in Poland and Romania, shelling doesn't stop either, so in any case, our members may either be stuck with no resources, or they may have their internet and electricity cut off, so it's better something be done very soon.

 

[Smart No More]

Agreed.

There are a couple of barriers to help which may be overcome by a bit ingenuity. What would really be useful in order to get the ball rolling is if we can get an idea of who/how many want help and what exactly they need help with. I think a little organisation might make it a bit more straight forward. The big issue I see is that we're on a suicide forum and whilst it might do the forums public image some good it's not really the place for humanity crusades. Don't get me wrong, I want to help and hope there's something we manage to assist with. I just feel we're unfortunate to be starting from a detrimental position. Perhaps we can forward things to an off site resource once/if we get some kind of action plan off the ground.

 

[GrumpyFrog]

Oh. I just saw this. I am grateful for your good intentions. And mildly embarrassed... Thank you.

 

[KimKevorkian]

Yes! Count me in! I'll keep an eye out. DM me, too. Excellent!

 

[summers]

@Nessie , can we just send you money directly via Bitcoin, and you can use it to help yourself and community?

To everyone who wants to help in the Ukraine, money is the way to go. All the aid agencies don't want things. It's too hard and volatile to send things now. Roads are fucked, shipping companies are not going to be reliable.

 

[KimKevorkian]

Or Moneygram? I can't figure out this crypto shit for the life of me. Another thought: Is there someone who cd accept, as point person, Moneygram, and then send all contributions to Nessie and others via crypto? Trust level for secrecy wd need to be high, but these are exigent circumstances.

 

[Brick In The Wall]

This is a very beautiful sentiment. I've spoken to a few members in active war zones and it can be both enlightening as well as heartbreaking. I wish I could donate or help in some way but I can barely keep myself afloat unfortunately.

 

[summers]

Or Moneygram? I can't figure out this crypto shit for the life of me. Another thought: Is there someone who cd accept, as point person, Moneygram, and then send all contributions to Nessie and others via crypto? Trust level for secrecy wd need to be high, but these are exigent circumstances.

The problem is most currency services are already sanctioned to Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus. Crypto is probably going to the best bet of getting money over there

 

[KimKevorkian]

Agreed.

There are a couple of barriers to help which may be overcome by a bit ingenuity. What would really be useful in order to get the ball rolling is if we can get an idea of who/how many want help and what exactly they need help with. I think a little organisation might make it a bit more straight forward. The big issue I see is that we're on a suicide forum and whilst it might do the forums public image some good it's not really the place for humanity crusades. Don't get me wrong, I want to help and hope there's something we manage to assist with. I just feel we're unfortunate to be starting from a detrimental position. Perhaps we can forward things to an off site resource once/if we get some kind of action plan off the ground.

Great organizational thinking!

The problem is most currency services are already sanctioned to Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus. Crypto is probably going to the best bet of getting money over there

Hmmm...How cd I get money then to a trusted point person who then cd send it on?
Nessie, Do you have some friends in another country who could receive mail for you. maybe forward mail for you? This might be another way, though it wd involve hard currency and trusting the mail wouldn't go missing. A c-note in a bday card for instance?

 

[Depressed Cat]

AirBnB and Etsy are two sites where people from all round the world are helping Ukrainians directly, through an indirect method

Airbnb and Etsy are now part of the “hidden infrastructure” for global humanitarian aid

Digital platforms are being used in ways that have been seen before during warfare.

qz.com

I've used AirBnB to send money directly to three Ukrainian families in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Chernihiv, by booking a weekend in each of those three lovely cities and letting the hosts know I won't be coming.

My hosts in Kyiv and Chernihiv replied, expressing their thanks. My host in Kharkiv, Anna, hasn't replied yet, and I'm very worried about her safety and that of her family. I hope they are okay and taking shelter.

AirBnB has also encouraged these direct donations, by waiving off their fees for Ukraine bookings, and by helping to host Ukrainian refugees in neighbouring countries.



I know it may be too late to create an AirBnB listing now, but what about Etsy?

Digital stickers supporting the courageous Ukrainian people have become a hot thing, and a direct way to support Ukrainians. The stickers are digital ones, so one does not need to ship them at all.

I wonder if our Ukrainian members can create an Etsy account for themselves and put up digital Ukrainian stickers for sale. This would be a good way of sending money directly to Ukrainians.

 

[GrumpyFrog]

can we just send you money directly via Bitcoin, and you can use it to help yourself and community?

I feel really embarrassed about this. Overwhelmed with gratitude and not sure what to do. Maybe you'd rather donate to organisations that help the children? I can donate on my side too, but that would just be an extra hassle to you.

The problem is most currency services are already sanctioned to Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus.

I don't think money services were sanctioned in Ukraine. I can check a certain service if you'd like. Moneygram seems to work.

Nessie, Do you have some friends in another country who could receive mail for you. maybe forward mail for you?

It is possible to deliver mail to some cities in Ukraine. It doesn't work in my city now, but works in a one that is fairly close, and there were even deliveries of mail via military!

I've used AirBnB to send money directly to three Ukrainian families in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Chernihiv, by booking a weekend in each of those three lovely cities and letting the hosts know I won't be coming.

My hosts in Kyiv and Chernihiv replied, expressing their thanks. My host in Kharkiv, Anna, hasn't replied yet, and I'm very worried about her safety and that of her family. I hope they are okay and taking shelter.

So lovely of you, thank you!

 

[KimKevorkian]

I feel really embarrassed about this. Overwhelmed with gratitude and not sure what to do. Maybe you'd rather donate to organisations that help the children? I can donate on my side too, but that would just be an extra hassle to you.

I don't think money services were sanctioned in Ukraine. I can check a certain service if you'd like. Moneygram seems to work.

It is possible to deliver mail to some cities in Ukraine. It doesn't work in my city now, but works in a one that is fairly close, and there were even deliveries of mail via military!

So lovely of you, thank you!

Just let me/us know an address via dm. I could pop it into mail this week. Pls check Moneygram. The Etsy idea is brilliant. I guess my break didn't last too long. SS has given me such a bizarre sense of comfort. I have nobody since my mom passed. All my sibs are shits. I have friends, but they're married with families and their own issues. I'm alone. Very. Yet, SS gives me a "lifeline" to dialogue and read others' experiences that I can't find anywhere else. And often those feelings and sentiments and cognitive trajectories are very relatable. If I can help you, I'll have directly assisted a deserving person in dire straits. Isn't that what life is about should we choose it?

 

[GrumpyFrog]

I guess my break didn't last too long. SS has given me such a bizarre sense of comfort. I have nobody since my mom passed. All my sibs are shits. I have friends, but they're married with families and their own issues. I'm alone. Very. Yet, SS gives me a "lifeline" to dialogue and read others' experiences that I can't find anywhere else. And often those feelings and sentiments and cognitive trajectories are very relatable.

Sweetheart, I'm so glad you're back! So sorry for your loss You are not alone with us. I totally understand what you mean, this site is my lifeline to other humans too. We're a close-knit communtity. You are important and you are loved here, because you have a beautiful soul

 

[Depressed Cat]

PayPal can now be used to transfer funds to Ukrainian bank accounts that have a linked Visa or MasterCard



PayPal does have an idiosyncratic process to set up a linked account (at least in my country), but despite this, a PayPal transfer should be one of the easiest methods to send funds directly to Ukrainians. A PayPal account also maintains a certain degree of anonymity.

@Nessie and all other Ukrainian SS members, if you have a Visa or MasterCard linked to your bank account, please create a PayPal account and let us know. Those of us interested in helping will get in touch through DM where you can share the same.