Solidarity Beyond Borders: “Sisterhood Portraits” Gala and the Success of the “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv” Campaign

16 March 2026 | Author: Natalia Melnychenko

On 9 March 2026, the third edition of the Polish-Ukrainian awards “Portraits of Sisterhood” took place at Teatr Studio in Warsaw. The laureates were Olga Solarz and Andriana Susak. The event also provided an opportunity to publicly summarize the widely recognized campaign “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv” and to present acknowledgements to its key partners and donors. The Open Dialogue Foundation was a partner of the gala.

The “Portraits of Sisterhood” award is granted for commitment to Polish-Ukrainian dialogue, fostering solidarity among women, as well as for support and alliance in defending democratic values, saving lives, and providing assistance during wartime. The laureates – Olga Solarz from Poland and Andriana Susak from Ukraine – were recognised for their humanitarian and social activities, as well as their engagement in helping those affected by the consequences of war.

Andriana Susak is a soldier and leader of the VETERANKA movement; a co-initiator of systemic changes in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including expanding women’s access to combat positions and strengthening social and medical protections for military personnel. Olga Solarz, in turn, is an ethnologist, volunteer, and author of the book “Wild Field. A War Story”. Since 2014, she has supported the Ukrainian army, and since 2022 in particular the 128th Brigade “Wild Field”. She is also involved in documenting the cultural identity of eastern Ukraine and in humanitarian activities. It is also worth noting that in 2014–2015 Olga was a volunteer with the Open Dialogue Foundation, responsible for humanitarian support for soldiers fighting in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

During the gala, a special award was also presented to Sister Małgorzata Chmielewska, head of the “Bread of Life Community Homes” foundation, as well as the audience award to Kateryna Polishchuk, a soldier, medic and defender of Azovstal, known by the call sign “Ptashka”, who, after returning from Russian captivity, continues her service and activities to commemorate the fallen. The horrors of Russian captivity were also described by Svitlana Holovan, who was imprisoned by the occupiers for six years.

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The Monday event was also an opportunity to summarise the “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv” campaign, which we co-initiated together with our friends: Jerzy Wójcik and Joanna Mosiej-Sitek from Sestry.eu, Natalia Panchenko from the Stand With Ukraine Foundation, and Zbigniew Jankowski from The Diplomatic Platform.

Thanks to the fundraising effort, in which more than 77,000 people took part, over PLN 11.5 million was raised, and the following were delivered to Ukraine:
– 744 power generators with a total capacity of 8.1 MW
– 918 stoves
– 300 power stations
The remaining funds have been reserved for the purchase of mobile transformer substations for frontline regions.

The aid was delivered in 15 trucks as part of 5 transports, thanks to the involvement of 6 carriers: InPost, DB Schenker, Raben Group, Cordis Logistics, Poczta Polska S.A., and Global Motion. The remaining funds have already been allocated for the purchase of mobile transformer substations for frontline regions, where the destruction of energy infrastructure is the greatest.

The campaign was coordinated by a group of Polish civil society organisations: the Open Dialogue Foundation, the Democracy Foundation, the Stand With Ukraine Foundation, Euromaidan-Warszawa, the editorial team of Sestry.eu, the Entrepreneurs Help initiative, and the Igor Tracz Foundation. Partners of the initiative also included UN Global Compact Network Poland and the Polish Red Cross, while one of the key donors was Catella Investment Management GmbH.

As Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcin Bosacki emphasised during the event: “Brave Ukraine has survived this exceptionally harsh winter, and I am proud that Poland could help. One example of this solidarity was the ‘Warmth from Poland for Kyiv’ campaign. It started with a single appeal. Then 77,000 Polish women and men joined and raised over 10 million złoty. As a politician and as Deputy Head of Diplomacy, I will say that diplomatic, political, and even military achievements are of great importance, but social achievements matter the most. It is social matters that connect our two nations. I sincerely thank you for this campaign, as it was – perhaps – the most important initiative between our nations over the past three years.”

During the event, certificates of appreciation from the Mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko and the Ambassador of Ukraine were presented to entrepreneurs: Rafał Sonik, Przemysław Krych, Tomasz Ulatowski, Tomasz Misiak; representatives of major business organisations: Wojciech Kostrzewa and Małgorzata Durska from the Polish Business Roundtable; Barbara Skowrońska on behalf of Ryszard Chmura, President of Corporate Connections; as well as Izabela Pieńkowska and Agnieszka Kalinowska-Sołtys on behalf of the United Nations Global Compact Network Poland.

The Ambassador of Ukraine to Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, thanked Polish entrepreneurs who supported the “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv” campaign and quoted a letter from Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha, who wrote, among other things: “Such initiatives strengthen trust between our nations and reinforce the Ukrainian-Polish partnership. Your work, dedication, and courage are an example of true leadership and a source of inspiration for many people.”

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