William Paterson Students Collect Donations for People of Ukraine

In an effort led by WP junior Domenick Ciminiello and the Exercise Science Club, with support from the Office of Campus Activities, Service and Leadership, William Paterson University is currently collecting donations for Ukrainian citizens and first responders.

Organizers are currently accepting three forms of donations: physical donations collected at a drop box located in the Student Center, Amazon Wishlist purchases, and monetary donations to Razom’s Humanitarian Aid Shipment that will allow the collected materials to be sent overseas. The Student Center drop box, located directly across from the information desk, will accept donations through April 8.

Ciminiello will personally collect the drop box donations and deliver them to Ukrainian Orthodox Holy Ascension Church, in Clifton, NJ, where church members will then send both the drop box and Amazon donations through Razom’s Humanitarian Aid Shipment.

Ciminiello was born in Ukraine and adopted by an American family when he was 17 months old.

“I feel lucky that we’re here in the US; but I felt there wasn’t much that I could do to help. After attending an event with other Ukrainians on Capitol Hill, and talking about what we could do, someone mentioned they were collecting medical supplies for humanitarian aid,” says Ciminiello.

At the same time that Ciminiello was setting up the drop box, Asmaa Embaby ’24 and the Exercise Science Club, of which she is public relations officer, were coincidentally planning a donation project of their own, specifically to aid first responders in Ukraine.

“After seeing the devastating news there, I felt a sudden need to do something. As an EMT myself, I know the struggles that first responders in Ukraine are going through and wanted to extend my help—even from more than 9,000 kilometers away,” says Embaby.

The Office of Campus Activities, Service and Leadership connected Embaby and the club with Ciminiello so that they could join forces in their altruistic work.

Click here for donation information and lists.

 

03/30/22