Personal Message from Costas Johnson, Stefania’s Founder,
My goal here is to share why Stefania chose the donation model, 'Donate the price of a coffee and create lasting change' and to explain exactly how it works.
Ambitious plans for lasting change
The Trustees of the Stefania Foundation know that to make significant changes, you need to have ambitious plans. Our purpose, approved by the government department that oversees charities in the UK, is set out in our objectives. These are:
- To relieve sickness and preserve the physical and mental health of the people in Ukraine, and to preserve and protect the mental health of refugees and their dependents living in the UK. This will be done by providing (or assisting in the provision of) equipment, facilities, support and services.
- To advance the education and training of the people in Ukraine and refugees and their dependents in need so as to advance them in life and assist in their rehabilitation.
Equipping Ukraine’s Hospitals
To support patients undergoing major surgery in Ukrainian hospitals, surgeons and nurses need the right equipment to do their jobs effectively. These medical teams are renowned worldwide for their skill and dedication, yet they’re being held back by shortages and outdated equipment – limitations that are costing lives. These are the lives of the country’s wives/husbands, mothers/fathers, brothers/sisters, sons/daughters.
A year ago, Ukraine’s President drew attention to the tragic loss of lives caused by the lack of essential medical equipment. With this in mind, our aim must be to ensure medical professionals have the best tools available. Nothing less will do.
Building Strong Partnerships
We have set up a partnership with the UK’s national health service, the NHS. Its central procurement team, NHS Supply Chain (www.supplychain.nhs.uk), has a catalogue of 600,000 items to meet the needs of hospitals across the UK. All the equipment we purchase will be new, and there is no limit to the quantities we can buy on behalf of Ukrainian hospitals. (I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at NHS Supply Chain for their dedication and support for the Ukrainian people.)
We also have an agreement with a logistics company (ALS SE), used by the British government, to deliver goods to Ukraine. This company, will handle the transport of the medical equipment.
Within Ukraine, we are working closely with a trusted NGO that supports hospitals across the country. This organisation will take care of the final delivery of equipment to individual hospitals once the items arrive in Ukraine. The NGO will also handle other important tasks. For obvious reasons, I won’t name this organisation either.
At first, we will deliver medical equipment once a month. However, as the programme develops and orders increase, deliveries are likely to take place every week.
During the early stages of the programme, Stefania will handle orders on behalf of the hospitals. Once the system is running smoothly, hospital management teams in Ukraine will take over, placing their orders directly through the NHS Supply Chain's online catalogue.
We plan to set up a Ukrainian Advisory Board, chaired by a Director General from a leading hospital. The board will include senior surgeons from hospitals across Ukraine, other relevant institutions, and members of the Stefania team. Its role will be to guide the project and make sure everything runs smoothly and equitably. More details will be announced early next year.
Funding Our Work
Achieving Stefania’s bold ambitions for the Ukrainian people requires more than just determination – we need a huge number of regular donors to help us meet our objectives.
The Trustees have identified the New Medical Equipment for Ukrainian Hospitals programme as our first priority. Once this initiative gains momentum, we will expand our focus to include Stefania’s two other key objectives.
Our fundraising model is straightforward: regular monthly donations. We’re asking supporters to donate the price of a cup of coffee each month – starting at just £3.75, with the option to give more. For this model to succeed, we need a huge community of donors to sign up as individual supporters and make ongoing contributions. However, with enough supporters, our approach will generate significant funds to support our three objectives.
Initially, the programme will benefit six hospitals of various types (including a children’s hospital) across Ukraine. As donations grow, so will the number of hospitals we can support.
Reaching Potential Supporters
To support our ambitious plans, we will reach out to a wide range of potential donors from institutions around the world, with a primary focus on Europe.
In the UK, we will contact:
30,000 schools (reaching over 10 million children)
40,000 churches (reaching around 5 million members)
250,000 Ukrainian refugees
‘High-net-worth individuals’
We will create 3,000 local community hubs to bring together schools, churches, Ukrainian support groups, local businesses, and other institutions.
Large and medium-sized companies in various sectors, such as supermarkets, will be invited to support Stefania through sponsorship and by encouraging their employees to visit Stefania’s website.
Mainland Europe
We will begin in Germany and Poland, focusing on thousands of churches and schools in areas where most of the 2 million Ukrainian refugees in these countries are living.
After this, we will expand to 30 other countries across mainland Europe that collectively host around 4 million refugees. We will invite these individuals to register as supporters and make a regular monthly donation.
All countries in mainland Europe will have the option to set up a similar structure to that of the United Kingdom.
Globally
We will reach out with a similar message to the worldwide Ukrainian diaspora (around 25 million people) through Ukrainian associations around the world.
Commitment to Transparency
We are committed to complete transparency about the donations we receive and how the funds are used. We will provide detailed data on the amounts donated and the purchases made through the online Stefania Dashboard.
Thank You for Reading My Message
I’d like to close by sharing the story of the Good Samaritan, told by Jesus. If you're not familiar with the story, here's a summary:
A man was travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho when he was attacked, beaten, and left for dead by a group of robbers. A priest saw him but walked by on the other side. A Levite also passed by without helping. Finally, a Samaritan came, saw the man, and showed compassion. He cleaned his wounds, took him to an inn, cared for him, and paid for his stay.
In the context of Ukraine, this story reflects the reality of injured people in desperate need of help. As a practising Christian, I felt a responsibility not to pass by but to search for a practical solution. Over the past two years, the story has stayed with me. Each time I thought about it, it reminded me to persevere, even when things were difficult, so – like the man in the story – I could find ways to help those in urgent need of care.
I’d like to challenge you: whose responsibility is it to help those in desperate need? Surely, it’s a shared responsibility – Ukrainian refugees, citizens of Europe and beyond, and all of us at Stefania – volunteers, trustees, and leadership. We have to come together to make sure medical teams in Ukraine have the right tools – tools they’re trained to use and that will make a real difference – so they can do their job properly and save lives.
Please Help
Thank you for reading my message. If you are a Ukrainian refugee, I know how much you care about your country. This is your chance to make a real difference. Please register as an Individual Supporter and start donating regularly. Your example will be a strong motivator to the British people and the Ukrainian refugees in mainland Europe, the Ukrainian Diaspora and many more around the world.
If you live in the UK or another country hosting Ukrainian refugees, or even outside Europe but care about Ukraine, please register and start donating each month. Contributions start at £3.75 and with enough people contributing, these small acts of generosity will add up to something genuinely life-changing.
Costas Johnson
Founder & Executive Chairman, Stefania Foundation