LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Kentucky man is back in the states after helping with humanitarian efforts for Ukraine.

What You Need To Know

  • It’s the second time for the Mike Schano, who stepped up to help during the ongoing Russia's invasion of Ukraine

  • Schano and his church collected funds to send to Ukraine
  • He helped purchase food and supplies to donate to those who've lost almost everything

It’s the second time Mike Schano stepped up to help during the ongoing Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"They just need more help, and that’s what I continue to do until this thing is over," said Schano.

Schano is taking a personal trip to Arizona after just returning to Louisville from helping those in Ukraine.

"During my first trip, my church asked me how it was going, and I told them in an email what we were trying to accomplish, and they wanted to help," Schano said.

That help turned into a donation collection that Schano took back to Poland and buy food and supplies to distribute to people in Ukraine.

"Each trip was to take a van full of food and as we went across the country, the northern half, I would say is better than what it was to begin with. It's not perfect, obviously. There's still a lot of damage, and we saw some of that whatever what we saw on the news here, I actually saw firsthand when I arrived," Schano said.

He described his 33 trips into the country as two Ukraines.

"Damaged buildings, windows blown out, torched buildings, people rebuilding, and as I drove the interstate and went through Lviv, and Kyiv and a few of the other cities as we went through life was seemingly getting back to normal," Schano said.

The two Ukraines he said looked like a normal north and war-torn south with many returning back home to Ukraine to find what’s left.

"They missed home, they missed the relatives and if they were going back to Lviv and Kyiv the northern half of the country, they were willing to take that chance. The people were fantastic, strong-willed, dedicated, patriotic. It was very moving to be a part of trying to help everyone," Schano said.

Ultimately, Schano has one message for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"I really hope that the Russians continue to protest what's going on and that they see the error of their leader's ways, and we can't blame all the Russians. But what's going on is wrong, and I wouldn't have gotten there in the first place if I didn't think that was the case," Schano said.

He said his church, Episcopal Church of the Advent in Louisville, collected $5,500 to send to Ukraine during his second trip.

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