StarCycle Collects Essentials For Women, Children In Ukraine

DANVILLE, CA - Jenn Soine, the owner of Danville StarCycle felt compelled to join the efforts in helping people in Ukraine.

“We have a personal connection to a family there through one of our instructors and we had to find a way to help. Beyond that, it’s just what we stand for here at the studio and why I opened StarCycle,” she said.

Tiffany Jaber organized the donation efforts, connecting the indoor-cycle studio with Bay Area group Hearts For Ukraine to be a drop-off location collecting essential items for women and children.

The goal was to fill up a van and the response was so strong that they may need to add another van.

Hearts For Ukraine rented a plane that will fly to Ukraine to deliver donations Saturday.

Bay Area native Euguene Tarasov, who lived in Kyiv for two years, started Hearts For Ukraine with a strong focus on logistics, so the group knows the best way to get the most needed items to humanitarian groups in Ukraine.

"The whole situation is just beyond painful. Sending aid is a massive feat and takes a lot of planning and transparency and we are focused on that," he said.

His ultimate goal is to create a sustainable effort to try and help save as many lives as possible.

"Hopefully, the war will be over soon but the destruction is so bad that help will be needed for years to come," he said.

Being a global family is what the staff at StarCycle is all about, Soine said.

“Community isn’t just Downtown Danville. It expands far and wide and we thought getting donations for them is what we can do; it’s a very emotional time,” Soine said.

Drop off donations at StarCycle until 4 p.m. Thursday at 155 Railroad Avenue, Suite A.