… to be a light in the world
One day, we received a package with a postcard box inside. Spider-Man. The box was filled with heartwarming messages of support for Defenders of Ukraine. Every card ended with the heroes shout-out, written in three languages: Glory to Ukraine! Слава Україні! 우크라이나 만세!
Eun [pronounced like the ‘-on’ in London; like Lond’eun’] is from New York City, USA. She learned about Postcards to the Front on an X/Twitter post and thanks “the fellas at #NAFO for bringing this to my attention!”
Eun explained that her inspiration to write messages of support to Ukraine’s Defenders goes even deeper:
I am a big fan of St. Francis’ famous prayer encouraging us all to be instruments of peace, light, and joy – and what simpler way to do so than using pen & paper & words – something so powerful, profound, universal and accessible to us all? Postcards to the Front Canada (PTFC) immediately piqued my interest as I’m a big fan of letter-writing and postcard/stationery collecting. I love sending and receiving handwritten postcards and letters as it’s such a small and simple, yet thoughtful, way to let someone know you spent a bit of your time sitting down to write out your thoughts for them. Honestly, the PTFC initiative found me in a timely moment – I had recently finished helping friends near and far raise funds for a medical/supply convoy to support front line units in Ukraine for the first time and followed their journey from afar via their gofundme page. It was an incredible experience for me – one that I wasn’t sure I could repeat despite my desire to continue – and combining this with following the war on a daily basis left me feeling a little helpless and wondering what else I could possibly do to help. Enter PTFC!
And so, about 200 Defenders in Ukraine have benefited from Eun’s care and support. How did she manage to write so many cards?
“When reading the news gets me down, I channel my fear/grief/anxiety/anger into writing the postcards and it’s been such a great and easy outlet to help me both process the news and feel connected to Ukraine!”
Other inspiration comes from Eun’s past experience as a volunteer in pastoral care for her local church, where she was involved with hospital/funeral/home visits, “making time for parishioners wanting to share and pray or just sitting with someone, and writing and responding to letters and cards sent in. One could say that sitting and praying or just thinking of how I could share a bit of a listening and empathetic ear via presence or words for a few years prior was great practice for writing postcards for Ukraine.”
When writing her cards, Eun thinks about someone or a specific place in Ukraine, usually after reading about someone in Ukraine, or a place, in the news or on social media. “I think of what I’d like to say to that someone that I read about [and write] to balance out the darkness with a bit of light.”
Of course, we wanted to know what inspired Eun to write Glory to Ukraine on each card in English, Ukrainian and Korean. She explained, “I think it’s a nice reminder that you don’t have to be Ukrainian to support Ukraine; just human. And for whoever is reading, [I want them] to know they have friends everywhere. The text in Korean is: 우크라이나 만세 – pronounced “ooh-kra-ee-na mahn-seh”.
Eun didn’t just send Spider-Man cards, though those were a lot of fun to ship off to the front lines! There were cat cards, art cards, touristy cards from various places … all cheerful in imagery and text. She raided her personal collection of cards, keeping in mind when choosing cards for Defenders, “someone perhaps sitting in a trench, or underground, or in a convoy, or in a makeshift clinic, or a warehouse of supplies, or returning from serving or volunteering, or just having a hard day and being able to have a brief moment of respite just by looking at a bit of lovely or funny art and thinking ‘someone thought of me when writing this’ (speaking for myself here as well).”
Many of the lovely scenic cat postcards that Eun has written are illustrated by Mr. Toshinori Mori at Tabineko. Eun also especially likes “the wonderful Mai over at Paper Treats Shop” for some of her favourite cards, and Aviva at The Washi Station where I’ve gotten most of my washi tape and stamps [to decorate cards], and my local postcard/ink/stationery dealers, Niconeco Zakkaya and Yoseka Stationery in NYC!
!WARNING! These links are a Postcrossing Alice journey into the wonderland of postcard/stationery/decoration bling!
Did we mention? Eun is a big fan of Spider-Man who is her hometown hero, and she sends a “shoutout to Queens – I had the privilege and adventure to be one of the handlers for the Spider-Man balloon in the Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in New York last November [see attached photo to really see how big of a Spidey fan she is]. So, I had so much fun picking out and decorating and writing the Spider-Man postcards.”
Eun shared with us her postcard-writing routine –
- First, I checked the Postcards to the Front website How To page and Ukrainian Phrases page to get some guidance before writing my messages. I wanted to get a sense of what was appropriate to write on the card – thank you so much for this helpful resource! In particular, the tips on verbiage and who/how to address it to were really useful; something I wouldn’t have otherwise known, before writing.
- I do some hand and finger stretches because I like to write a whole batch of them in one sitting which leaves me with some crampy hands at the end of a session!
- I spend some time thinking of the general message I’d like to write and edit it down and practice writing it a few times to ensure that it fits into the space of a postcard, and to make sure the Ukrainian I’m writing is at least a little bit legible, since I’m still learning Ukrainian!
- I usually decorate the cards first – thank you, PCTF, for helping me downsize my washi tape and stamp and sticker collection to give me an excuse to buy some more!
- Lastly, I write out the message in the remaining space.
Ultimately, Eun hopes that “when a Defender receives one of my cards, they feel a little less alone and that they know someone’s thinking of and praying for them and their safe return/mission’s success/victory!”
Eun’s efforts don’t end with postcards. She also donates as often as she can to the non-profit Brighter Ukraine Foundation; for example, to support a project to raise funds and to ship 250 3-D printers; as well, they make regular trips to deliver supplies to frontline units and to volunteers in Ukraine.
She also listens regularly to Ukraine: The Latest, a podcast from the Telegraph; “the only source of news I know following the war every single weekday since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. True to my own unhinged fashion I binged their first 500+ episodes when I wanted some context about Ukraine – I don’t recommend doing this if you’d like any semblance of free time and just start listening from today if you aren’t already! They’re currently running a fundraiser for KHARPP, a UK charity rebuilding homes in Kharkiv, Ukraine for the one-year anniversary of podcast founder David Knowles’ passing.
Finally, Eun also supports Ukraine Supply that she describes as “one of so many amazing volunteer initiatives/nonprofits I learnt of through the podcast, Ukraine: The Latest. Ukraine Supply is a volunteer network gathering funds and supplies to buy used trucks and to recycle them into ambulances and convoys for frontline units in Ukraine – one of us is currently fundraising to purchase a truck for a winter trip, if anyone is interested in learning more.”
For more information on Ukraine Supply, you can check out this amazing two-part podcast episode of a ride-along on such a convoy trip here.
Like many of us, Eun is new to the world of Ukraine. Thanks to the Russian aggressors. She candidly shared with us that when she “first started following news of Ukraine in early 2024, I knew almost nothing about Ukraine and knew zero Ukrainians. I discovered a group of coworkers supporting Ukraine through one of our work chat channels online and met my incredible colleague, Anton. I discovered his absolutely amazing journey that started with asking fellow coworkers to buy a tourniquet or first aid supply or two, and ended with him gathering enough supplies to fill his living room and spending $10k of his own money to ship several pallets’ worth of supplies over to Poland and then to drive it over the border himself for delivery in Ukraine. That was in 2022.”
Armed with her new awareness, and with some guidance from Anton, Eun learned about the Brighter Ukraine Foundation, the nonprofit that she now regularly supports. And, she remains “continually inspired both by his example and the impact of the small individual efforts of many coming together – one of many such stories I’ve heard and joined since! You can learn more about Anton’s endeavors here.”
Altogether, Eun is “proud to be part of such a generous [postcard warrior] community of thoughtful and creative humans doing our small part to bring encouragement to Defenders and volunteers in Ukraine!”
Further, she reminds, “the pen is mightier than the sword – come and use yours to make a difference!”
In one of her emails to us, Eun shared a photo of herself in the United Kingdom at St. Volodymyr’s statue. When asked about the photo, she explained:
I saw this statue inundated with flowers and messages of support for Ukraine on social media and wanted to make a point of visiting it when I was in London so I could join! A belated shoutout and thank you to the Notting Hill farmer’s market flower vendor who let me buy out her stock of sunflowers for the day 🙂
Fun fact: the London statue of St. Volodymr was erected on May 29, 1988 by prolific Ukrainian-Canadian sculptor Leo Mol [Leonid Molodozhanyn]. As a person of faith, I’m encouraged by this reminder that I, too, can use my own presence in the world to be an example for good and light, for those both near and far from me.
As mentioned, Eun had no awareness of Ukraine until early 2024, when she watched the documentary 20 Days in Mariupol and then accidentally wandered into a photo exhibit at the Ukrainian Institute.
“I wasn’t following the news closely, knew no Ukrainians, and probably couldn’t even spell Ukraine properly or point it out on a map. If you are feeling discouraged looking around you at the world, I want you to know that the feeling can be countered by looking for and joining your fellow humans, and by rising to the occasion to be a light in the world, day in and day out in ordinary, yet powerful, ways. You can start by sharing a word, a photo, a documentary, a postcard – do not underestimate the power of pen and paper to work together in a way that is deeply sincere and meaningful to touch hearts and hold readers (and writers!) hands to point to what’s good, true, and just in the world.”
We would add, follow us on Instagram and Facebook.
Eun’s final words to you, dear reader, come from David Knowles, the late founder of the Ukraine podcast that sparked her journey to support Ukraine:
“… I can say that I hope everyone listening hears in these stories the kindness, courage and selflessness, as much as they hear the cruelty, destruction and needless suffering. I hope people realize that in the face of great evil, there’s always hope, as long as good people are courageous enough to do the right thing. And that’s true of the highest politicians, generals, dignitaries, to the most ordinary of us. From Polish/German mechanics to volunteers from around the world who decided their friends needed help and got involved. Even to you, our listeners.”
And even you, our dear readers. Thank you for rising to the occasion to be a light in the world!
Need ideas about what to write on your cards? Check our How to page, and our Ukrainian phrases page. Maybe you want to organize a group of family, friends or others to write postcards? Check our website for tips, How to Run a Postcard-Writing Workshop.
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