How Ukrainians in LA banded together to help loved ones back home

Once home to silent films, the 100-year-old Jensen Melrose Theatre in East Hollywood has a new purpose today.

"When I saw it with my eyes I said, 'Wow!' That's so cool," Yulia said. 

Go up the narrow stairs to what was once the theatre's mezzanine, now walled off to make a small classroom and a dance studio. 

"Such a big city, but we have a Ukrainian Culture Center," Yulia said. 

For the last eight decades, the Ukrainian Cultural Center's primary focus has been promoting the country's arts and culture in Los Angeles — at least, until recently. 

"Aside from what we typically do at the center, which are cultural events, one of the things we had to do was transition to a war footing," Laryssa Reifel, president of the center, said. 

Pivoting from culture and arts to war relief in 2022 meant learning a lot of new things. 

"I had a phone call with Congressman Adam Schiff on the third day after the outbreak of the war," Reifel said. "I never had a conversation with a sitting congressman before, let alone one who was on the intelligence committee. We've had to learn how to charter airplanes. Those are not our typical areas of expertise."

With the strength of numbers, Reifel became the mastermind behind the creation of the American Coalition of Ukrainian Organizations. 

"We have people who specialize in advocacy, others who specialize in delivering medical kits to the front lines, others that specialize in drones," Reifel said. 

Uniting to help the homeland from thousands of miles away, they're also helping new arrivals forced to start over, giving them a sense of community and belonging. 

"Those Ukrainians who came here earlier, they can give you many advices," Yulia said. 

Yulia fled the bombings in Kyiv for safer life here in America. 

After joining a local Ukrainian choir, she performed at one of the center's fundraising concerts. 

"The people who are now refugees abroad, we can send money and help," she said. 

The fighting in Ukraine, which has lasted for more than two years, continues to affect transplants like Yulia. Back home, she got news that her 59-year-old father had been summonsed to report to the local recruitment center for possible mobilization. 

"The thing that still surprises me is when I meet people and they ask me if the war is still going," she said. "You tell them it's much worse."