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Cleveland Walkathon Raises $15,000
for Children of Chornobyl
By Alex Kuzma

On a brilliantly sunlit fall morning, hundreds of Ukrainian-Americans from the greater Cleveland area walked through the historic Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland in a 5-kilometer walkathon to benefit the Children of Chornobyl Relief and Development Fund. Despite chilly temperatures and a crowded community schedule, the September 29th “Tremont Walk for Chornobyl” drew over 300 participants, including local high school and college students and veterans of humanitarian missions to various hospitals and orphanages in Ukraine. Thanks to corporate sponsors and an intensive pledged campaign, the Walkathon raised over $15,000 for CCRDF’s hospital partnership program.

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If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or feedback please email us at TremontWalkforChornobyl@gmail.com.

The Chornobyl Tragedy

The year is 1986. The date is April 26. The time is 1:23 am. The village of Chornobyl, Ukraine is sleeping peacefully, unaware of the radiation spreading over her, the radiation that would poison her plants, and cause suffering and even death to her children.

The worst nuclear disaster in history occurred when Soviet Union Reactor Number Four exploded, sending radiation, many times that of Hiroshima, into the soil used by surrounding farms, the water drunk all over Ukraine, and the air breathed all across eastern Europe.

The effects of this explosion could have been ebbed, were it not for the carelessness and arrogance of Soviet Union Officials. Notice of the accident was not given until two days after its occurrence, and crucial information regarding even minimal intake of radiation was not provided until eleven days later. Lives could have been saved, but because of the government's inaction, many suffered.

Unfortunately, this catastrophe did not only affect a single generation - many are still suffering. The effects of this disaster last until today, and will exist for Ukraine's children to cope with as well. Twins Serhiy and Ira were born on June 15, 1994. When the nuclear accident occurred in 1986, their mother was 5 years old and their father was 11 years old, living near the Chornobyl area. Both parents were healthy at the time of the twins' birth. The twins were born premature at 32 weeks gestation. They have had recurrent infections and show retarded development with cerebral paralysis.

Serhiy and Ira are only two examples. Many children in this area are suffering with diseases and handicaps because of a preventable accident. They are innocent. They have done nothing wrong. They need your help. Please help us, the Tremont Walk for Chornobyl, to give them the voice, the help, the care, the love that they deserve.