EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute will host Drive for Ukraine on Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 6 to 9 p.m. at its Cleveland Heights campus, 12383 Cedar Road. The $100 fundraiser will feature a Ukrainian buffet, beer, wine, music, a raffle and a live auction. Cleveland.com reported that about $80 or more from each ticket is intended to support medical supplies.
The event is tied to founder Brandon Chrostowski’s planned October humanitarian trip to Ukraine. Cleveland.com described the dinner as having a $20,000 target for medical supplies and essential aid, while FreshWater Cleveland reported a $25,000 goal for the broader campaign. FreshWater said the effort had reached $19,500, consisting of $11,000 in contributions and $8,500 from 85 ticket sales, by the time of its report.
Ticket buyers and online donors can add their names to a crew banner that will travel inside the ambulance, according to Cleveland.com. The campaign is intended to help fund the vehicle’s delivery and other aid connected to Chrostowski’s trip.
An Ohio Ukrainian connection
The United Ukrainian Organizations of Ohio invited Chrostowski to join the effort. The coalition was formed in 1928 to coordinate the social, cultural and charitable work of Ukrainian-American organizations in Cleveland, according to the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. The Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation says Northeast Ohio has more than 35,000 Ukrainian-Americans and that Ukrainians began settling in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood in the 19th century.
The planned ambulance delivery
Chrostowski plans to join more than 50 volunteer drivers from 12 countries in a humanitarian convoy organized by Ukraine Focus, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit. He will drive a used ambulance from Prague to Lviv, a route of more than 500 miles, and the vehicles are expected to be handed over to Ukrainian medical teams there, according to Cleveland.com.
Ukraine Focus has delivered more than 110 ambulances to Ukrainian frontline medics since Russia’s 2022 invasion, according to Cleveland.com and Bacon’s Rebellion. Bacon’s Rebellion reported that the organization estimated each ambulance could save up to 200 soldiers per month.
This will be Chrostowski’s fifth trip to Ukraine. After reaching Lviv, he plans to cook with Ukrainian chefs on Friday, Oct. 9, Cleveland.com reported.
Humanitarian work through food
Chrostowski first traveled to Poland in 2022 with World Central Kitchen, where he helped prepare meals for refugees, according to FreshWater Cleveland. His subsequent humanitarian work has taken him to Poland, Ukraine, Israel and Djibouti, where Cleveland.com reported that he cooked for refugees and others.
In Ukraine, his efforts have included serving refugees and orphaned children, cooking alongside Ukrainian chefs and helping raise money for repairs at a children’s hospital, according to Cleveland.com. FreshWater Cleveland also reported that the upcoming mission will combine the ambulance convoy with additional humanitarian work after Chrostowski reaches Ukraine.
