Art Supplies for Ukrainian Refugee Children

UMA’s Professor of Art Robert Katz knows the terrain along the Ukraine and Polish border quite well, so when he saw the flood of Ukrainian refugees fleeing into Poland to escape the bombing of their homes, he was familiar with the perilous route that many were taking to find safety.

In 1989, Katz received a fellowship to join a team of wildlife biologists from the Polish Academy of Science. Their research included gathering data of a wolf population that was thriving in the remote Carpathian Mountains in southeastern Poland.  For nearly ten years Katz retuned to Poland annually. During this time he also locating his ancestral village located along the Polish/Ukraine border. He learned of the fate of members of his family at the hands of the Nazis. 

So upon seeing so many families, including countless children, fleeing the horrors of war—leaving their homes and possessions behind—Katz asked himself: How can I help?

Katz is a sculptor, and he believes in the power of art. He knows that art, music and poetry can assist people process and transform the most difficult moments of life. From their Hallowell home, he and his family decided to raise money for art supplies that would be sent to a refugee center in Lublin, Poland, where young families were being given safe harbor. Knowing that clothes and food were already being provided at this shelter, the Katz family wanted to provide a vehicle for creative expression, color and light at a time of unprecedented upheaval, loss and darkness. 

Ironically, the shelter was once a famous Yeshiva (a school of Jewish study). 70 years ago, the Nazis burned the books and murdered many of the students and faculty of the school. Today, it is a site of compassion and refuge for those seeking safety. 

A GoFundMe site was created. Within four days enough money was raised to purchase thousands of dollars of art supplies. The generosity of neighbors, friends and colleagues supported their efforts. This past week the many boxes of art supplies arrived in Poland and were personally delivered to the refugee center by one of the wildlife biologists with whom Katz had worked years ago.