Funding for the renovation of the 8,600-square-foot basement at the Lviv high school was funded in part by the Ithaca Rotary Club, which raised $31,000 for the project. The club’s funding included a $25,000 disaster response grant from The Rotary Foundation.
Ithaca Rotary then launched a fundraising campaign that generated another $9,000 to pay for the bomb shelter renovation at a second school in Lviv that enrolls nearly 50 children with disabilities and special needs. Last February, the club hosted a benefit concert featuring local musicians and artists, which helped raise money for the project.
On Thanksgiving Day, Olexiy Gusev, former president of Rotary Club Lviv International, gave Rotarians from around the world who helped raise money for the high school shelter a video tour of the project. Attending the meeting were Rotarians from Ithaca, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany.
Gusev, who worked with Ithaca Rotary on the project, said when the war is over, the bomb shelter will become a welcoming student and community space.