Tag began its work in Ukraine in 2011, with a partnership with Magen David Adom and the Ukraine Red Cross. We delivered first aid training, provided several ambulances, and opened a clinic in Uman. In 2020, Tag’s Leiman Fund started a series of partnerships with schools across Ukraine, provided scholarships and a range of other support to schools. Since the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Tag scaled up its involvement in Ukraine, in light of the persistent humanitarian crisis affecting the country. We are focused primarily of five cities: Zhytomyr, Mykolaiv, Vinnytsia, Odessa, and Dnipro.

Ukraine assistance​

Tag assisted its partners in various cities across Ukraine in a multitude of ways, from food parcels to psychosocial support, from special events for internally displaced people to the installation of air conditioning in bomb shelters. We assisted in a variety of infrastructure works, from conversion of basements into bomb shelters for schools and community centres, to repairing windows and roofs damaged by the bombs.

A key focus for Tag is the provision of therapists and social workers to help people deal with the trauma, and we supported a range of summer and winter children’s and adult programs. We supported the regular distribution of food parcels, as well as provision of hot food to the neediest. We also respond to specific requests for assistance, such as help providing security to premises in light of worsening security conditions. In all, many thousands of people have benefited from a range of efforts during this reporting period.

Refugee homes in Poland

Tag sent teams of professionals – mostly social workers – to volunteer at the Polish border with Ukraine. Streams of migrants, almost all women and children, were crossing the border to safety, and were in desperate need of assistance. We also sent experts who ran workshops for other aid workers, as well as training to Polish government agencies, to equip them with the skills to deal with the complex psychosocial needs of the refugees.

Based on this initial work, we identified a strong need for safe accommodation for vulnerable women and children who had fled Ukraine. To this effect, Tag partnership with an Israeli NGO called Topaz to established homes for refugees in the city of Rzeszow in Poland. The homes were running until they were no longer required. However, our team continued to assist former residents of our shelters with guidance and support. Also, our volunteers have continued to be active in public education about the situation in Ukraine and the needs of the refugees, such as holding a photo exhibition.

Ukraine orphanage in Israel

In the early weeks of the war in Ukraine our partner from Zhytomyr decided to transfer their entire orphanage to Israel. Tag has supported them in a variety of ways, as these children are dislocated from their normal lives. While they are residing in Israel on a long-term basis, many of the children are dislocated from their families and are supported in a variety of ways.

At the outbreak of the full-scale invasion, Tag assisted an orphanage in Odessa to move to Germany, as the city was under constant bombardment. A year later, we helped them to return the orphanage to Odessa. We have supported the orphanage in a variety of ways, such as helping to install a generator to cope with the constant power outages, as well as increasing its bed capacity to accommodate the unfortunately growing demand.

Helping in whichever way we can

Tag has been helping our partners on the ground to meet the complex needs of their communities, including: