President Andrew M. Rajec presenting a gift to Bishop Milan Lach of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Parma.

The First Catholic Slovak Union at its March 2022 annual Board of Directors meeting made a donation of $50,000 for the refugees of the war in Ukraine.

It is estimated that the Russian invasion in Ukraine has caused millions of Ukrainians to seek safety in neighboring countries. Slovakia shares a 60-mile common border with Ukraine with three official border crossings. Many FCSU members had and still have ancestors that came from Eastern Slovakia.
About 200,000 Ukrainians have sought refuge in Slovakia, with potentially more coming.

The FCSU wired $25,000 directly (the check was symbolic) to the Slovak Catholic Byzantine Eparchy in Košice, Slovakia, which directly adjoins Ukraine, was one of the first Catholic agencies in Slovakia to help refugees. Bishop Lach is a member of the FCSU. He is also a Jesuit priest.

Another $25,000 was sent to the US Bishop’s fund for refugees in Ukraine to assist Catholic relief for refugees from the conflict in Ukraine.

We offer our prayers, in addition to monetary help, for the refugees and pray that the conflict will end and Peace can return to Ukraine as soon as possible.

We believe that we as a Catholic Society have an obligation to help our fellow man/woman in their time of need.
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We – Slovaks living in the United States of America, Slovak-Americans, and Slovak-American institutions – stand unified with our friends in Ukraine against aggression and in protest of attempts to deny their freedom to choose where, how, and with whom they wish to pursue their future.

We express our full support for the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and for the freedom and democratic rights of the Ukrainian people. We strongly condemn Russia’s unjustified and unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine.

As people who endured and still remember the invasion of our own country in 1968 and the decades of occupation that followed, we have a moral obligation to act in solidarity with our neighbors. We are witnessing history repeat itself, and must remember that any threat to democracy and independence is a threat to us all.

Our message is clear: the United States, the European Union, and international institutions must enact strong measures to hold Russia’s leadership accountable for their breach of international law. We call upon them to strongly support Ukraine’s plight for freedom, peace, and prosperity.

We are asking everyone in the Slovak community in the United States to join our effort to raise funds for humanitarian relief in Ukraine; all donations will benefit the International Committee of the Red Cross.

We stand in unity for peace, democracy, and for the preservation of a free Ukraine.

Slovaks in America