Cannabis industry ramps up support for Ukraine

As war wages in Ukraine, cannabis industry companies in the United States are doing their part to help those affected by the ravages of conflict. Russia invaded its smaller neighbor Ukraine on February 24 after months of massing on the border between the two nations, sparking a humanitarian crisis.

In California, San Francisco’s MediThrive Pharmacy is raising funds for the Sunflower of Peace, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit dedicated to helping the Ukrainian people amid the Russian invasion. Misha Breyburg, CEO of MediThrive, is a Ukrainian Jewish refugee who immigrated to the United States as a child from Odessa, Ukraine, in the 1970s.

“It hits home especially, especially Jewish Ukrainians,” he told the Jewish News of Northern California. “I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t do anything.”

To show his support for the people of Ukraine, Breyburg had the storefront of the pharmacy in the Mission District painted blue and yellow, the colors of the Ukrainian national flag. The Company is also donating the proceeds of all cannabis sales made on March 6th to Sunflower of Peace, whose fundraising efforts are providing medical and humanitarian assistance to those affected by the war in Ukraine.

“While many charitable efforts are focused on bringing food and military aid to Ukraine, medical workers responding to Ukraine’s crisis are struggling to treat the wounded and sick,” MediThrive said in a statement. “They need more medical care and survival supplies.”

MediThrive will also donate 10 percent of cannabis sales through March 13 to Sunflower of Peace, which incorporates Ukraine’s national flower into its name and logo. On Monday, Breyburg said the ride had already climbed “into the high five digits.”

“It felt pretty incredible,” he said.

Sunflower of Peace was founded in 2014 with the mission to mobilize support and relief for Ukrainian orphans and internally displaced people. After the coronavirus pandemic swept Europe and the rest of the world, the organization focused on Ukrainians hardest hit by COVID-19. And following the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces launched last month, Sunflower of Peace has once again focused on directing its efforts where they are needed most.

“Due to the current crisis in Ukraine, Sunflower of Peace has launched a new fundraiser to provide medical and humanitarian assistance, which will be deployed by paramedics and doctors in areas affected by the violence in Ukraine,” the group writes on its website. “We acquire and distribute first aid kits, medicines, medical tools and other survival items that save hundreds of lives. These shipments meant the world to people affected by violence when we launched our first fundraiser in 2015, and they mean the world to all Ukrainians now.”

Pot and Pierogi in Detroit

Courtesy of Luxury Loud

In Detroit, the Luxury Loud cannabis dispensary and cultivation center is partnering with Srodek’s Quality Polish Food for a Pot and Pierogi Ukraine fundraiser. Luxury Loud will donate 100 percent of its sales on March 13 to UNICEF for the Children of Ukraine, while Srodek’s food truck offered free pierogi and kielbasa in return for a donation.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is also personal for the directors of Luxury Loud. Grower and Technical Director Marko Malinowski and his brother Christian Malinowski, one of the partners in the company, are Ukrainian Americans well known in Detroit’s Ukrainian community.

“It’s a little bit more unique,” Malinowski told the Detroit Free Press. “Pot and Pierogi grab people’s attention for some reason, and they’re actually a good match.”

Cannabis PR firm Mattio Communications is also raising funds for Ukraine by matching donations to one of several organizations working to keep Ukrainians safe. The company will match donations through a social media campaign announced last week.

“As we watch in horror as violence and heartbreak spread across Ukraine, the need for action was greater than ever,” the company wrote in a statement to the High Times. “The Mattio Communications team will match all donations made to the United Nations Refugee Agency, Kyiv Independent, Voices of Children, Amnesty International and CARE Ukraine Crisis Fund up to US$3,000. Just make your donation and send a screenshot to @MattioCommuncations on Instagram.”