Academy of Our Lady Brings Holiday Cheer to Ukrainian Children

A toy can temporarily make a child’s problems disappear.

At least 200 children in war-torn Ukraine are receiving four extra-large boxes packed with dolls, games, art supplies, puzzles, model cars, and more, thanks to the Academy of Our Lady in Glen Rock. The parochial school students and their families generously organized and donated the items during the October “Share the Joy – Give a Toy” initiative. The toys will be delivered on the Feast of Saint Nicholas, Dec. 6, by the Georgian Humanitarian Legion.

The logistics required a network of local, regional, and international connections. Initially, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Academy of Our Lady community supported Ukraine through prayer. The Georgian Humanitarian Legion in Ukraine had reached out to its U.S. contacts asking for donations. The Georgian Humanitarian Legion primarily works to provide Ukrainians with food, clothing, medicine, and rebuilding. Its projects aim to help families of military personnel, temporarily displaced persons, residents of de-occupied regions, children, animals, hospitals, and shelters. The toy drive was held at the request of retired second-grade teacher Kathy Kucyna, who reached out to Principal Katharine Clemente.

The school community was motivated to improve the welfare of children in Ukraine.

“Ukrainian children were displaced and wounded, their homes shelled, and many orphaned,” said Administrative Assistant Irene Saviano, who helped facilitate the collection to bring some light into their holiday. “The Academy of Our Lady community came through as soon as the principal notified them of this donation project through social media and our website. Together we aim to bring joy to Ukrainian children who were thrown into a war not of their own doing. In an educational institution, along with learning math, history, reading, and science, our students are learning how to share, give, and care for another child, another human being in the name of Jesus Christ. We are Christians. What better lesson can be taught to our children than to be an example of Jesus Christ through love and compassion?”

“Academy of Our Lady has gone above and beyond to give 200 kids at least one day of smiles. We are grateful to share our abundance,” Saviano added.

“Our community is filled with people willing to help where it is needed, and it goes beyond borders and faiths,” Principal Clemente said. “Our kids are good about getting excited to help others with unique opportunities. As a Catholic school, we want to reinforce the value of giving.”

The Pre-K through 8 school community was motivated to do what they could to improve the lives of children on another side of the world, she noted.

Coming to terms with explaining war and conflict, educators at the Academy of Our Lady guide children in spreading love and reciprocity in kindness, Saviano said. “When the boxes left, these organizations knew the value of the Academy of Our Lady,” added Principal Clemente. “Our world needs more faith and less fighting. The children are not at fault, and yet they suffer. We need to find peace,” Saviano added. “As a community, we locally contribute to global peace.”

Principal Clemente said the older children lead conversations about the war in Ukraine that are almost too complicated for many adults to understand.

Academy of Our Lady is co-sponsored by two parishes that turn 100 years old and 70 years old this year: Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Ridgewood is 70; St. Catharine in Glen Rock is 100. The two parishes merged in the 1990s to form the Academy of Our Lady, where Principal Clemente taught Pre-K – fourth grade before becoming the school’s principal.

The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), New York branch, under the direction of President Ivanka Zajac, assisted in handling the toys being sent to Ukraine through humanitarian channels here in New Jersey, school officials said. The parcels were mailed on Nov. 3, with the toys traveling through European customs and arriving in Ukraine on Nov. 21, before being routed to Kyiv for delivery to hospitals, orphanages, and homes by the Georgian Humanitarian Legion.

The UCCA is a non-profit, non-partisan community-based organization, with local all-volunteer chapters throughout the United States. It united nearly 30 national Ukrainian American organizations under the UCCA National Council. Local branches of UCCA meet the needs of their membership and the larger Ukrainian American community in which they operate as well as identifying and promoting activities of specific interest to their members. An estimated 1.5 million Americans have roots in Ukraine, and the UCCA was founded following the invasion of Ukrainian lands in 1939 when community leaders began to demand unifying representation to raise their voices in defense of their ancestral homeland.

According to the latest UCCA status update, the war in Ukraine has led to 17,748 injured civilians, 27,449 victims among Ukrainians, 9,701 killed, 120,000 civilian buildings destroyed, 113,138 war crimes registered, and 510 children killed.