I consider January and February (which has only just begun) to be among the most successful months in Poland since February and March 2022. Why successful? Because we can speak of an outpouring of goodness from ordinary Poles. Suddenly, the last year, when the Moscow shuras had the upper hand in online messaging, vanished. I’ll use Mozart’s music to describe the howling at the sight of the ten million złoty raised through the “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv” fundraiser, or the announcement of the fundraiser, and already around three million złoty raised through Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś’s campaign. Yes, the Polish Church has finally woken up and embarked on the right path of love for one’s neighbor.
Empathy and Solidarity
These actions, and many others, would not have been possible without the generosity of society. Poles want to help. Poles remember martial law, the hopelessness of communism, and the Russian occupation forces. And they also remember the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as the mother of many nations. As long as we lived in harmony, defeating us was impossible. When we were divided, we were singled out for the Russian cauldron. We lost our country. We will not repeat such a mistake.
I’m writing here about charity and history. Both factors are important. Charity is within us, and history shows where it comes from. To be fair, we can also show other actions that are an act of support for a struggling country. Fighting against Russia, which doesn’t hesitate to commit the worst crimes. Support for the people and the country that protects us from the fate of the people of Bucza, Irpień, or Kupiansk is important to Poles. And Poles demonstrate what solidarity means in the land of Solidarity.
Warm soup for the people of Kiev
One of the incredible initiatives we’ve recently witnessed is “Warm Soup.” Krakow restaurateur and volunteer Bartłomiej Szczoczarz cooked 4,000 servings of żurek (sour rye soup) with sausage and traveled with other volunteers to distribute this warm meal to Kyiv. They lined up in several locations throughout Kyiv, distributing the soup with sausage, and also donated essential products to those in need. As Kyiv residents themselves said, things aren’t so bad that they’re starving yet, but they appreciate the Poles’ gesture as incredibly important. Important because it showed Kyiv residents that they’re not alone in this fight. That there are still people supporting them.
Author of the photo: Piotr Kaszuwara
In these extreme conditions, with temperatures in Kyiv reaching minus twenty degrees Celsius, distributing the soup was a significant logistical challenge. The Poles brought everything they needed to heat the soup to a comfortable temperature, and they personally cooked it, distributed it, and spoke with Kyiv residents. The campaign generated a significant response. It was covered by Ukrainian television stations and appeared on news portals. This campaign certainly demonstrated the reality that Poles stand with Ukraine..
Author of the photo: Piotr Kaszuwara
Piotr Kaszuwara, a correspondent for Polish Television and Radio 357, visited one of the distribution sites. He commented on the distribution of żurek in Kyiv on his Facebook wall in an interesting way.
“Ladies and gentlemen, here is the żurek soup,
Żur is very Polish here.
Someone in Kiev is asking about żurek,
a full bowl awaits him here.
They cooked żurek soup in pots
and when the frosts came – they arrived.
They fed people with żurek soup,
they returned to Krakow.
Even though they shot drones at us,
the cooks didn’t let go of the ladle!
This exceptionally courageous and socially active journalist recently became a TVP correspondent, but it’s already clear that his coverage contains a significant element that could be described as “human.” He shares much about the everyday lives of people during this winter, including the Russian attacks. It’s worth noting that Piotr Kaszuwara was honored with the Wrocław Award for his social work in June 2025. He was thus recognized as one of the most distinguished residents of this city on the Oder River. Certainly deservedly so.
What is needed in cities after shelling?
Zofia Jaworowska, founder of the Brda Foundation, probably didn’t even dream of it at first. Does the number 4,000 ring a bell? It sounds different… four thousand zlotys is both a lot and a little. And 4,000 windows? And things got more serious. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Brda Foundation has sent this many plastic windows to Ukraine. They send them where they are most needed: to Kyiv and the surrounding area, Kharkiv, and even Kherson. The Foundation collects used windows, but those in good condition, and sends them to those in need. This gives windows a second life. In Poland, the hassle and expense of disposal is eliminated, and in Ukraine, these windows are in great demand.
The idea to send windows to Ukraine occurred to the owners of the Brda Foundation back in 2022. In places where there were bombings and fighting after the expulsion of the Russians, everything was needed. Windows are rarely produced in Ukraine and are very expensive. Today, there are other priorities, so it turned out to be a brilliant idea. Thanks to Petro Vladimir, who began collaborating with the foundation, they acquired contacts to foundations in Ukraine that agreed to distribute them to those in need.
Photo of Kharkiv. Source: Wikimedia – press here
And the number of people in need is growing. Due to increasing bombing and the deliberate destruction of civilian buildings, including residential ones, windows are becoming a necessity. So… what about window size? That was a real problem. Michał Sikorski’s expertise came to the rescue. He became interested and, together with students from Polish universities, found a solution. Instructions were developed on how to handle the various sizes of windows and the opening into which they were to be inserted, so that they didn’t clash significantly with the overall appearance of the building in which the window was placed.
The Foundation manages the process from start to finish, from collecting the window from the donor to transporting it to its final destination. This location is often as much as a thousand kilometers from the Polish border. The Foundation raises funds for transportation, which is no easy task. Ordinary people and businesses help, often those who donate the windows. For them, it’s still cheaper than disposing of the windows in Poland.
Poles can be admired, although not all of them
There are no reliable data summarizing the assistance provided by foundations, companies, and private individuals to Ukraine. These are certainly not small numbers, as numerous convoys cross the border daily, both large and small. In addition, there are parcels sent by ordinary Poles to their friends and family in Ukraine. The scale of the flow from Poland is evidenced by the fact that two large private companies, Meest and Nova Poszta, primarily rely on it for transport. If they find it profitable to transport parcels, it means there are a lot of them.
I thank Poles for being wonderful. I don’t thank envious, vindictive, or hateful people. I have only one request of them. You see what the Polish church is doing. If you consider yourselves Christians, follow its path.
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