Our stores across North America are proud to employ and serve people of all backgrounds and walks of life. Coast to coast, we welcome people as they crisscross the nation, hearing and sharing stories of travels, families and experiences. The road is what connects us all – wherever we are from – and in our mission to Fuel Life’s Journeys, we set out to do much more than fuel your gas tank.
Seeing the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and the impact of the ongoing conflict across the globe, we launched in March a round up campaign to raise funds for Save the Children’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund. In addition to donating 100% of the funds from guests who rounded up their purchase, Pilot made a matching pledge of $100,000 towards the cause.
Save the Children is providing relief for children and families inside Ukraine as well as in neighboring countries through delivering food, water, hygiene kits, voucher assistance, and other humanitarian programs. The organization aims to reach 10 million children and their families impacted by the Ukraine crisis. Click here to learn more about the critical assistance they are providing.
A few cents can add up to make a big difference.
Together, we were able to donate a total of $1,153,000 to Save the Children’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund.
“Save the Children is extremely grateful for Pilot Company’s support in response to the devastating crisis in Ukraine,” said Luciana Bonifacio, Chief Development Officer, Save the Children. “The funds raised will enable us to distribute critical emergency supplies and where possible, establish safe spaces for children, ultimately helping protect impacted children and families in Ukraine and neighboring countries.”
Because of your generosity, Save the Children can help more Ukrainian families get the support they need. Donations to Save the Children help make possible their ability to provide essential assistance, such as:
- $50 can provide 10 warm, cozy blankets to children displaced from their homes
- $100 helps supply a month’s worth of nutrition food to a family in crisis
- $175 can provide five families with emergency shelter materials
Meet a few of our fleet customers who have Ukrainian origins to hear their perspectives on the importance of Pilot and the industry coming together to support Ukraine during this difficult time.
Sergii Stetsiuk, CEO of IIK Transport
Tell me about you and your family? Do you have family still in Ukraine?
I was born and raised in Ukraine and when I was 18 years old, I moved to the U.S. My parents have always lived in Ukraine, but since my dad passed away 2 years ago my mom visits us a lot here in the US.
I have a lot of family and friends in Ukraine. I usually go there twice a year as we have 2 offices there.
What does it mean to you to see the trucking industry come together to support Ukraine?
The trucking industry is one of the most powerful industries in the U.S., so we have the financial ability to raise money and humanitarian help for Ukraine. Plus, transportation helps with collecting and moving aid items to be shipped overseas.
What was the significance to you in Pilot joining the effort to raise money for Save the Children’s Ukraine Relief Fund?
As a Ukrainian born person, I appreciate every help and donation my home country can get. I’m happy to see that everyone here tries to help as much as they can. Thank you for that.
Only with help and support can we win this war. This a disaster, civilians and kids are dying every day, many cities are destroyed – I have no words to describe it.
Sergey Bort, VP of Marketing & Strategic Business Development at GP Transco
Tell me about you and your family? Do you have family still in Ukraine?
I was actually born in Russia and lived there until I was only 6 years old. After that, my family moved to Israel for 7 years, and then moved to the U.S. in 2003. My father was born in Mariupol (the city in Ukraine that perhaps got bombed worse than any other), though he lives in the United States now.
My wife’s family is another story; her mother is in hiding in an underground-type shelter in her home outside of Kyiv, and her partner is out fighting for his country.
What does it mean to you to see the trucking industry come together to support Ukraine?
It means a lot for me to see the industry come together in a bi-partisan manner on this issue; people in trucking and logistics putting their differences aside to do what is clearly the right thing is extremely inspiring and gives me hope, especially after seeing how divided we’ve been as a nation for the past few years.
What was the significance to you in Pilot joining the effort to raise money for Save the Children’s Ukraine Relief Fund?
It was truly great to see; when I reached out to Pilot Flying J saying that we at GP Transco started Trucking & Logistics Professionals (TLPU) and asking if you would join, it took only a couple of days for me to receive a call saying that you’d not only contribute but also start a roundup program. It’s very impressive to see how quickly you folks acted and got this off the ground. When we were launching TLPU, I did not expect this level of support from so many organizations, including Pilot Flying J of course.
Save the Children is actually one of the organizations we point people to when they are asking about joining TLPU.
From all of us at Pilot – thank you to everyone that was part of making this donation happen. To learn more about our commitment to giving back and the ways we support our communities, team members and guests, visit pilotcompany.com/about/#giving.
