Help Ukrainian Suzuki teachers and families

 and from Ruth

Each day that goes by creates more suffering, and in just the first week alone, the Ukrainian Suzuki teachers have lost all their income, seen families split up in order to flee, and have lost track of the whereabouts of some of their Suzuki families. Like the great cellist Casals, Dr. Suzuki was strongly against war. The common goal of every Suzuki teacher must be peace in order to fulfill Dr. Suzuki’s dream of a world where all children can grow up surrounded by love, in service to others through the marvelous power of the soul's life force which they are learning to express through music.

In these terrible days, our Suzuki families and colleagues need concrete support from the worldwide Suzuki community. We are deeply grateful to the Japanese Suzuki teachers and friends who have expressed their solidarity with the Ukrainian Suzuki teachers. Your donations will be transferred to a bank account in GBP set up by the UNSA, where the president Nataliia Kopienkova will be able to withdraw them and put them to use in helping the Suzuki teachers. Nataliia has been designated the direct beneficiary of all funds received. The funds can be transferred after a minimum of two weeks. 

Gofundme does not charge any fees to the organizers for using its services, but it does deduct a small amount from each donation before the money is transferred to the beneficiary.  For this reason, the “tip” of 15% which you see when making a donation is completely optional, and can be either eliminated completely or reduced to a smaller amount by sliding the green bar to the left. 

With the donations already received before the crowdfunding platforms were established, funds have gone to two violin teachers who needed to be evacuated from Kharkiv and Severedonetsk, (which was totally inaccessible due to heavy bombing) and to another teacher and her husband who house refugees trying to cross the borders, and who need money for food and petrol.

The UNSA currently has a total of 335€ and a donation of 9900 PLN (about 264,827¥, or 2.063€) from the Polish Suzuki Association in its account.  Nataliia has also received donations to her personal account which she has used in the first two weeks of the war to help the teachers.
In UAM (Ukrainian hryvnia) this is the equivalent of 172,5854¥, or 1,344€. 
Any remaining donations will help the teachers to restart their studios, buy supplies and begin teaching after the war is over.

 Thank you for your huge support in bringing our Suzuki global community together to help one of our newest ESA members as they struggle to exist.

THE TEAM:

Ruth Miura is a Suzuki piano teacher and ESA/SAA teacher trainer who lives in Barcelona and teaches at the Colegio Montserrat. She studied in Matsumoto as a kenkyusei, and translated for Dr. Suzuki on his visits to Europe.  She is deeply grateful for the constant support and inspiration over the years which she has received from TERI. 

Anna Sibley is a Suzuki piano teacher and an ESA Instructor. Her Suzuki teacher trainer was Grant Mead.  She teaches in Bristol and lives in the cathedral city of Wells in Somerset (UK). Originally from Poland, Anna is deeply committed to spreading Dr. Suzuki's philosophy to her Polish Suzuki piano colleagues. She is planning to come to Japan on a study trip, and looks forward to visiting Matsumoto and connecting with the source of the Suzuki method and its teachers.  

Both Anna and Ruth thank Dr. Suzuki for the way his philosophy changed their lives. 

Photo: Nataliia Koptienkova (president of the Ukrainian Suzuki Association) and her students.