In this interview which first aired on Nash Holos in March 2025, Canadian Kobzar tells us about NAFO, the Wild Hornets, and the Toonie Tuesday fundraiser.
To listen, click on the player. Transcript below.
Enjoy!
Pawlina: Russia’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine is into its fourth year. Unfortunately, it has morphed into a political football for the media, which pays scant attention to the realities that the Ukrainian people face and have to deal with daily.
It’s normal, if sad and bit callous, for compassion fatigue to sit in halfway across the world here, and donation fatigue along with it.
Not saying that people don’t care or want to help, it’s just that now the shock has waned and we all need routine in our lives, and our bank accounts aren’t limitless.
So we don’t know what to do.
But someone has figured out how we can still help support Ukrainians in their fight for survival and freedom without breaking the bank. While scrolling social media the other day, I came across something called Toonie Tuesdays and a unique West Coast connection.
I reached out to the organizers and connected with a fellow going by the handle Kobzar, and he joins me by phone now from Toronto.
So welcome to Nash Holos, Kobzar.
Canadian Kobzar: Hello, and thank you so much for having me here. It’s an honor to speak about this. Really appreciate it!
Pawlina: Well, it’s an honor to have connected because, you know, you’re going through social media and you’re just kind of, you know, in a daze because you get kind of hypnotized going through it and then something just twigs and, whoa, and then I saw West Coast and Toonie Tuesdays and NAFO and … OK, I’m going to find out more! So hence we connected. And so why don’t I let you explain what is Toonie Tuesdays, what is the connection to the West Coast, and yeah, what’s it all about?
Canadian Kobzar: Oh, for sure. Yeah, I’d be happy to chat. And I think your introduction there about maintaining fundraising, despite donor fatigue, is actually one of the core principles for Toonie Tuesday. And that’s why we actually established it, because the reality is this is a long war of attrition, not a sprint. And we need to continue to support Ukraine as much as we can.
But most importantly, support Ukraine without breaking the bank, because let’s be honest, we live a very uncertain time economically. But more importantly, we want to make sure that our donations go where it matters the most, where it’s urgent to vetted and trusted locations.
And of course, we want to see what we donate go to a good use and feel part of something greater than our own. We want to feel like we make a difference.
And those are really the core principles to Toonie Tuesday.
Now, just to give everyone a little bit of background of who and what we are.
So for those that don’t know about NAFO, so NAFO is also known as the North Atlantic Fellow Organization. We are essentially an international group of people that have joined forces. And this is international, like not only the Toonie Tuesday team, but NAFO in general has representatives from every country across the planet, from Canada to Zealand, Ukraine, and even in some cases, Russia.
But which is, yeah, surprising. That’s a tale for another time.
But we have volunteers everywhere. And we’re all united with supporting Ukraine, supporting democracy and essentially putting Russia in its place, which is in the back pages of history.
Pawlina: Absolutely.
Canadian Kobzar: Now, NAFO started off as essentially a way to counter Russian disinformation. That’s actually where my name comes from, Kobzar. I wrote about Ukrainian history to counter Russian propaganda. A lot of other people did the same about countering the Russian narrative.
But essentially that evolved into fundraising for Ukraine because of the connections that a lot of us got. We were able to directly connect to Ukrainian volunteers, Ukrainian NGOs, Ukrainian soldiers even, and really connect with them to find out what the urgent needs were.
And so a lot of fundraisers started to develop. And one of those fundraisers is actually Toonie Tuesday.
So a brief introduction about Toonie Tuesday.
Essentially, my friend Sam, who’s based in the UK, we were essentially moaning on Twitter about how to effectively fundraise for Ukraine because the problem is there’s so many fundraisers.
There’s so many urgent needs. Most people just get absolutely overwhelmed.
Pawlina: Yeah, right.
Canadian Kobzar: Where can we donate? Who needs it the most? Who can we trust most importantly? And, you know, because it’s very difficult.
So what Sam and I eventually came up with the idea is, look, we’ll find a well vetted organization or unit and we’ll promote it on Twitter.
So I should also mention Toonie Tuesday and NAFO is primarily based on Twitter.
Toonie Tuesday, we have Blue Sky, we have Instagram, we have YouTube, et cetera, et cetera, and I will provide that information. But we’re primarily Twitter based.
But it’s the starting point was on Tuesday, let’s just post a well vetted organization, promote it and see how much we can raise. Right.
So this started in 2023. So our first one was to one of our colleagues, Alex Bond, who’s a very reputable Ukrainian volunteer.
And we provided it to several units. And in one day, we raised about a thousand dollars, which was at the time very impressive.
Pawlina: Yeah.
Canadian Kobzar: And I should also mention the concept of why Toonie Tuesday, because we really wanted it to make it accessible for everyone. Right. Because everyone can’t just throw five thousand dollars, four hundred dollars, fifty dollars. Right? So we wanted it to make it accessible for everyone.
So we figured, you know what, why not two dollars? Right. So a Toonie, you know, hence the Canadian connection there. Right. So we make that post, leave it up for 24 hours and people donate.
So a thousand dollars. But then as it got steam, it started getting two thousand dollars every Tuesday and then six thousand dollars every Tuesday and then eight thousand dollars every Tuesday.
And on New Year’s Eve, we managed to raise twenty thousand dollars. And that was for Wild Hornet’s drones.
So this was going to the front lines. I think it was across at the time. Yeah. So twenty thousand dollars in one day.
And as of last week, we raised about six hundred thousand dollars. So….
Pawlina: Six hundred thousand dollars you’ve raised?
Canadian Kobzar: Yes.
Pawlina: Just by just by collecting Toonies?
Canadian Kobzar: That’s correct. And I mean, it’s just a testament to our philosophy.
Pawlina: Right. That every little bit adds up.
Canadian Kobzar: So, you know, a big or small, we take them all, you know, a little drop in the ocean, that sort of power of the people.
Pawlina: Wow.
Canadian Kobzar: Exactly. This is the essence of crowdfunding.
Pawlina: Oh, crazy. So congratulations. That is quite a feat.
Canadian Kobzar: Well, it’s a collective effort. Right. And we have a pretty big team, very dedicated team. There’s, you know, about 20 of us who each week put in a lot of volunteer effort just to make this happen, betting, promoting. But then it’s the collective whole that really makes it happen. Right. And this is where every individual can really pitch in.
And also, this is where the West Coast comes in.
Pawlina: So the connection with the West Coast?
Canadian Kobzar: So this was, I would say, I think it was two years ago or last year. We were raising money for snipers in Ukraine. So there’s a charity, the Warriors of Light. And we were raising a lot of money. But as always, there’s usually a point in the day where things start to slow down.
So we typically start the fundraiser, 9 a.m. key of time, and it ends 12 o’clock Vancouver time. So really just around the world.
But anyway, we’re hitting the slow point. And I would say it was probably 7 p.m. Toronto time, maybe 8 p.m. Toronto time.
And out of nowhere, all of these West Coasters just started donating a silly amount of money, like a lot of money. And we raised that day ten thousand dollars, and I would say predominantly because of the West Coast.
So usually around this time, around seven o’clock our time, we’ll always give a shout out to the West Coast fellas because they always make a huge impact every Tuesday.
So a big shout out to our West Coast supporters!
Pawlina: Wow! OK, so before we go further, then how then how do I do it? You’re based in Toronto and you say this is all around the world. So anybody with an Internet connection?
Canadian Kobzar: Yep.
Pawlina: So how do I do it? How do I donate to Toonie today?
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah. So there’s a bunch of ways you can do it. So you can go on Twitter and if you’re morally inclined or banned…
Pawlina: I’m banned there.
Canadian Kobzar: No problem. So what you can do is you follow us either on Twitter or Blue Sky or even go on Instagram.
Pawlina: OK.
Canadian Kobzar: And what we’ll do in our Twitter handle, just for your reference, is Toonie underscore Tuesday.
Pawlina: OK.
Canadian Kobzar: And we also have a website which is ToonieTuesday.gives. And that actually has all of our social media. It also lists all of our campaigns. And you can see what we’ve done for the past couple of years and connect with some of those volunteers.
But anyway, what you will do is you go to the Twitter or the Blue Sky. We’ll post the link and we’ll post the payment information. So just for clarity, we don’t touch any of the money. We don’t collect any of the money.
That’s for transparency, but also to get the funds where it’s needed most. So we’ll post the link directly to the NGO, directly to the volunteer or directly to the unit. So, you know, your money is going right to the place we’re promoting. Right.
Pawlina: OK.
Canadian Kobzar: So typically payments is through PayPal. There’s also Monobank and various other methods of paying money. We try to include at least two methods of payment because not everyone likes PayPal. And for whatever reason, Monobank doesn’t always work for North Americans or Western Europeans.
So so usually it’s PayPal, though, but it’s predominantly where you can send your donation.
Well, PayPal works and, you know, whatever your your thoughts about it.
Pawlina: If that’s the only way to do it, then why not?
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah, I mean, I’ve got my reservations to PayPal as well. But, you know, at the end of the day, when you see what we can accomplish using it, it’s pretty incredible. Because at the end of the day, we’re able to raise money for electronic warfare that saves the lives of soldiers on the front.
We’re able to raise money for Medicare, for ambulances. We even raised money for an armored vehicle for the 3rd Assault Brigade. So a lot of important kits that they need in Ukraine.
And it’s not just military. In some cases, it’s humanitarian as well. So we try to mix it up so people, if they don’t want to donate for drones, they can get something else. But we typically do focus on the urgent needs as much as possible.
Pawlina: That’s that’s absolutely mind boggling. I mean, my head spinning right now. I can’t even think of the next… I’ve got so many questions, which ones we ask next. So you find … so you source these…. The recipients are, you mentioned, an assault brigade, volunteers, NGOs. So you pick a different one each week or how does that work?
Canadian Kobzar: Each week, we try to have an organized schedule. But the reality is needs change so frequently. So while we have our schedule, that changes quite a bit.
But the typical process is either someone will make a request or we will do research and find someone who we want to help. And then we’ll put them on the docket and we’ll reach out to them and do our typical vetting process.
Pawlina: OK, when you say we, this is NAFO?
Canadian Kobzar: So, yeah, when I say we, I’m talking about my Toonie Tuesday team. So that’s myself. I think I’m the only Ukrainian Canadian on the team.
Well, that’s actually not true. There’s there’s a well, there’s a Ukrainian American, but we’re international. So we have a couple of Americans. We have a couple of Brits. We have people from all over and we all communicate.
I don’t want to say signal just because of what’s happened recently. But, you know, by various means of electronic communication. You have to be careful who you accidentally add to it.
Pawlina: You might have Tulsi Gabbard in there or something … you don’t want her to know what’s going on.
Canadian Kobzar: Absolutely not.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. Wow.
Pawlina: That is absolutely amazing that you can organize the power of the Internet and support the power of the people. This is amazing.
So you mentioned something about military equipment as well as humanitarian equipment and military equipment, the big elephant in the room or the little elephant in the room that is very powerful is drones. And you’re involved and you’re involved in that.
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah. So we typically do raise a lot of money for drones. That is by far the most requested, biggest request by the units on the front. That’s what really makes a difference.
Pawlina: If it’s not drones, it’s electronic warfare, right?
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah. So, for example, today’s Toonie Tuesday or rather yesterday’s Toonie Tuesday. I should also mention Toonie Tuesday starts on Tuesday, but we also have something called Orthodox Toonie Tuesday, which occurs on Wednesday. So if anyone forgot about Tuesday, they can donate today.
Pawlina: Why? Why is it called Orthodox on Wednesday?
Canadian Kobzar: Oh, just, you know, the joke like before Christmas, you know, was officially changed to December 25th, you know, Ukrainian Christmas, as we know it here was January 7th.
Pawlina: Yeah. OK, gotcha.
Canadian Kobzar: OK, yeah.
Pawlina: Well, good to keep that tradition alive, because I, yeah, I kind of always liked the thought of two Christmases and one that was a little later.
Canadian Kobzar: Oh, me too. Me too. I love that. But, you know, it is what it is. Anyway, so that’s the origin of Orthodox Tuesday.
Pawlina: OK.
Canadian Kobzar: But what we did was the 28th Brigade, specifically the Georgian drone team was looking for drones and we’re raising money for them. And at last count, we were about six thousand dollars, but they were looking for Maviks and drone equipment. And they’re a drone specific unit within the 28th Brigade.
Pawlina: Wow. OK.
Canadian Kobzar: So today’s Orthodox Wednesday.
Pawlina: So we can still we can still donate to Toonie Tuesday. So if I was going to do that, I would go to if I was not banned on Twitter, I’d go there and find Toonie underscore Tuesday. Or I would go to your website, Toonie Tuesday dot gives.
And you can go to their alternative social media there.
Canadian Kobzar: Oh, yes. Instagram and Blue Sky. Find Toonie Tuesday. I can give you the Blue Sky, too, if you want. It’s at Toonie Tuesday dot bluesky dot social.
Pawlina: OK, good. OK.
Canadian Kobzar: So lots of opporToonieties then to find you on social media!
Pawlina: And all you do is then click on a link, I guess? And it’ll take you to where you can go to PayPal and make your donation?
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah, it’ll so typically we have on our post the two methods of payment. Sometimes there’ll be a link tree which you can click to and you’ll be able to see how to donate.
Pawlina: OK, awesome. And so this week you’re sending the donations are going to be going to what?
Canadian Kobzar: Yeah, sorry, as I mentioned, the 28th Brigade and the specific Georgian pilots drone team. So they’re they’re a group of Georgian fighters within the Ukrainian army. And again, they are a drone specific unit and they’re fighting out of across right now.
So helping them would be absolutely integral because as we’ve seen, the momentum is shifting across, which is amazing. So the more we can get them the drones, the more the tide will turn.
And that’s the other thing about Toonie Tuesday that’s incredible. There’s a lot of bad news in the war right now. But when you see the equipment, we can get these people and then putting it to good use, it’s just one of the best feelings in the world and to be frank, one of the most rewarding feelings for me, just knowing I’m doing my little part to help them out.
Pawlina: Oh, absolutely. I’ve got goosebumps thinking about it.
So it’s Orthodox Wednesday today. I’m going to make my Toonie donation and make a point of doing that every week because I want to be part of this, too.
You know, doing doing a show and bumping gums about it is great. But when it comes right down to it, talk is cheap. And a Toonie, Toonie a week. Who can’t do that?
Canadian Kobzar: You know, but you know what? Just to add, I would like to say, you know, talk isn’t cheap because one of the things we’re really looking for is spreading awareness. Right. Because the more people that know about us, the better it becomes and the more money we can raise.
Like the premise was if you have ten thousand followers on Twitter and each person pays two dollars, it’s twenty thousand dollars. Right. So vocalizing it, spreading the word, that helps.
Which is, again, why I’m grateful that you’re letting us use your platform to promote that, because the more this gets out there, especially among the Hromada (Ed note: Ukrainian Canadian community), that’s invaluable.
Pawlina: Yeah, good point. And I’m very happy to to do that for you to help spread the word to our listeners.
And thank you so much for doing this incredible work, for coming up with this idea and for continuing to do this.
Canadian Kobzar: So it’s just like I said, this is this is our country. Ukraine is our, you know, our ancestral homeland. And I want to do and I know a lot of other people want to do as much as they can, because it’s not just a country at stake here.
This is the future of democracy for Ukraine, for Europe and for the rest of the world. And so we can’t say I believe.
Pawlina: And for us, too. I mean, we’re we’re we’re finding out that, yikes, we could very easily be Ukraine.
Canadian Kobzar: Exactly. Right. And not in a good way.
Pawlina: And not … exactly. Yeah.
So so that’s great. Thanks so much. I’ll call you Kobzar. I do know your first name, but I’m not going to use it because Kobzar is just so cool.
Canadian Kobzar: I appreciate that. Thank you.
Pawlina: So thanks again, Kobzar, and all the best to you with Toonie Tuesdays and Orthodox Wednesdays and and NAFO.
Give my best regards to to your fellas … and Slava Ukraini!
Canadian Kobzar: Heroyam Slava!
