Share
The following is the appeal from bb on GMAT Club
Dear GMAT Club members and visitors, I am appealing for your help on behalf of the people of Ukraine, my family and my friends. I have never shared my personal story on GMAT Club… I did not think my background really mattered but it does now - with the dire situation in Ukraine.
I grew up in Kyiv, less than a mile from the TV station and Babiy Yar (the holocaust monument built by Soviets after victory over Nazi Germany). This area was recently hit with a missile strike on the TV tower killing not only 5 innocent passing by civilians but also succeeded in killing something inside of me. Imagine seeing an object from your childhood memories being attacked, bombed, and exploded. Ukraine's president Zelensky said that it was the second time that crimes are being committed on the same spot, 80 years later, but it is more than that. I learned to drive next to the TV tower – there used to be a driving school exactly where they found the charred bodies of 5 people. I went to a high school 2 bus stops away. My uncle, my cousins, many of my college friends lived in Kyiv. Right now my uncle is still there, spending most of the days and nights without power in a dug-out shelter he built several years ago.
I left Kyiv when I was 24 to pursue my MBA in the US. I have spent my childhood and most of my life in Ukraine and would return often to visit my mother while showing my own children my homeland. Yet despite all the death, destruction, and injustice, in many ways I have never heard my friends and family to be so proud and upbeat. I never imagined that someone staring down a 40KM-long convoy of death could be so positive and optimistic. The people I am in touch with are not stupid – they know their chances but they are not afraid to die because there has never been a reason more righteous to fight, even if they are likely not to survive.
My friends, family, and the country of Ukraine need help now more than ever. I am compelled to do my part by asking our talented and driven GMAT Club community for help – whether it is lobbying your government for more sanctions, signing up with the Ukrainian IT army, spreading this message (please share on social media and with your contacts), or contributing to a charity – every bit really does make a difference!!!
Unfortunately many of the Ukrainian local charities lack infrastructure to process payments outside of Ukraine and rely on often complex wire transfers. To help facilitate contributions, the GMAT Club team has taken the initiative to create a fund that will support 4 charities (more below). You are welcome to donate that accepts most debit, credit, and bank cards.).
GMAT Club Supported Charities:
1. Caritas https://www.caritas.org/
2. Come Back Alive - https://savelife.in.ua/en/ this charity is based in Ukraine and provides safety equipment such as helmets and bulletproof vests to the Ukrainian army. It was established in 2014 and has great transparency and accountability.
3. International Red Cross https://www.icrc.org/en/donate/ukraine
4. World Central Kitchen https://wck.org/
Dear GMAT Club members and visitors, I am appealing for your help on behalf of the people of Ukraine, my family and my friends. I have never shared my personal story on GMAT Club… I did not think my background really mattered but it does now - with the dire situation in Ukraine.
I grew up in Kyiv, less than a mile from the TV station and Babiy Yar (the holocaust monument built by Soviets after victory over Nazi Germany). This area was recently hit with a missile strike on the TV tower killing not only 5 innocent passing by civilians but also succeeded in killing something inside of me. Imagine seeing an object from your childhood memories being attacked, bombed, and exploded. Ukraine's president Zelensky said that it was the second time that crimes are being committed on the same spot, 80 years later, but it is more than that. I learned to drive next to the TV tower – there used to be a driving school exactly where they found the charred bodies of 5 people. I went to a high school 2 bus stops away. My uncle, my cousins, many of my college friends lived in Kyiv. Right now my uncle is still there, spending most of the days and nights without power in a dug-out shelter he built several years ago.
I left Kyiv when I was 24 to pursue my MBA in the US. I have spent my childhood and most of my life in Ukraine and would return often to visit my mother while showing my own children my homeland. Yet despite all the death, destruction, and injustice, in many ways I have never heard my friends and family to be so proud and upbeat. I never imagined that someone staring down a 40KM-long convoy of death could be so positive and optimistic. The people I am in touch with are not stupid – they know their chances but they are not afraid to die because there has never been a reason more righteous to fight, even if they are likely not to survive.
My friends, family, and the country of Ukraine need help now more than ever. I am compelled to do my part by asking our talented and driven GMAT Club community for help – whether it is lobbying your government for more sanctions, signing up with the Ukrainian IT army, spreading this message (please share on social media and with your contacts), or contributing to a charity – every bit really does make a difference!!!
Unfortunately many of the Ukrainian local charities lack infrastructure to process payments outside of Ukraine and rely on often complex wire transfers. To help facilitate contributions, the GMAT Club team has taken the initiative to create a fund that will support 4 charities (more below). You are welcome to donate that accepts most debit, credit, and bank cards.).
GMAT Club Supported Charities:
1. Caritas https://www.caritas.org/
2. Come Back Alive - https://savelife.in.ua/en/ this charity is based in Ukraine and provides safety equipment such as helmets and bulletproof vests to the Ukrainian army. It was established in 2014 and has great transparency and accountability.
3. International Red Cross https://www.icrc.org/en/donate/ukraine
4. World Central Kitchen https://wck.org/
