Senior Colburn Clark is the president of Bears Animal Advocacy and is in charge of raising funds for UAnimals, a Ukrainian animal aid organization that began its work in 2016.

“They are the largest in the country right now,” Clark said. “Humans are getting a lot of aid but the aid going to animals kind of not as much and that’s why I think it’s important.”

UAnimals runs animal shelters and provides food and veterinary services for animals in need. The organization has rescued horses, cats and some animals out of a zoo for relocation away from dangerous warzones.

“If you subscribe to their Patreon, they will send you photos from the war,” Clark said.

Clark said that he found the organization on social media, specifically Reddit. Clark said that his attention was directed toward UAnimals due to how Ukraine entered the public eye on social media.

“Around the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, on the vegan subreddit, people were talking about ways to help animals affected by the war and this was one of the charities,” Clark said. “I did some more research on it to see if they were legitimate, and I found out they were.”

Clark said that the organization is fairly sizable with many members.

“They posted 20 animal rescue volunteers and received the distinction of the first all-Ukrainian Animal Protection award,” Clark said. “But it’s far more than that. They’re coordinating efforts for a lot of people coming into the country.”

Clark connected with UAnimals initially on Patreon, where he sends them money and has the ability to view the posts that they create. He said that he has asked for the money he has donated to go toward vegan products, such as vegan-specific dog food or hay for horses.

“They were very quick to respond but their English wasn’t the best,” Clark said. “I’m sure I could request photos of the specific donations, but I don’t know if they would have that. The funds probably get pooled. As an organization, they have sent photos of, generally, what they’re doing. They send me email updates every day.”

Clark said that one of his biggest challenges is fundraising for the project.

“Where we’re at, there are a lot of college students,” Clark said. “Not everybody has money that they can donate. I haven’t really had any negative interactions at the table but it’s been challenging to raise funds here. You kind of have to be aggressive and ask people if they want to donate, you can’t just be passive and sit there and expect them to.”

Despite these challenges for Clark, he said he has raised a total of $290.

“Our treasurer will verify all the cash donations that we get and all the Cash App and all the Swipe donations we get,” Clark said. “I usually add a little bit of my own money to that and then she verifies that I’ve sent that payment.” 

Clark has held a few fundraising tables in the Ronnie Williams Student Center, asking students to donate.

“We did one event last November and then we did one event February 24,” Clark said. “This is our third.”

Clark said he will be at his table March 10 and March 13. He also said that he might do one or two more events later on in the semester but is unsure as of right now.

Since Clark is heading toward graduation, he mentioned that his plan for after graduation is to hopefully visit the country and help on a more personal level.

“I’ve had thoughts about going to Ukraine to help,” Clark said. “I’m not really in the best shape of my life right now, so I need to get in better physical shape but that’s something that I want to do.” 

Sophomore Brayden Bailey is one of the students who has supported UAnimals. 

“I was inspired to donate because animals and wildlife are critical to our society and raising funds for them to have further care and protection is necessary for societal stability,” Bailey said. “There was also a desire to help animals across the world that are abused and are uprooted from their habitats when they are destroyed.”

Bailey said that he was not aware of the organization before he made the decision to donate.

“When I was asked to donate at the booth, Colburn talked about their cause and what the donation was going to support and why they wanted to help,” Bailey said. “I would definitely love to donate more in the future, whether it be through this organization or with other nonprofits to support animal welfare.”

Bailey said that he hopes to see a physical impact from the donation that he has made.

“The impact I wish to see is one that is tangible to the lives of animals being treated properly and living a long and healthy life. Every animal deserves the same level of respect and freedom,” Bailey said.

Bears Animal Advocacy invites students to contribute to the organization as much as they can.

“Please donate to UAnimals,” Clark said. “You can go on the UAnimals website and donate through the website or you can donate to UAnimals at wild.uanimals.org via PayPal.”