ABOUT US

VISION

A society where helping others is natural and acting together is second nature.

MISSION

To bring together individuals, organizations, businesses and their resources to provide practical assistance, strengthen the resilience of people and communities, and encourage public engagement in building a safer future.

HISTORY

The organization was founded in 2013 in Engure. Before the full-scale war in Ukraine began, the organization provided help and support to families in need or those facing difficulties here in Latvia. For example, every year at Christmas, we visited 20-25 low-income families and lonely pensioners in the Tukums region, bringing joy to 80-100 people.

AREAS OF ACTIVITY

AREAS OF ACTIVITY

Ukraine’s Resilience and Recovery
We support Ukraine’s defence units and civilians by providing and delivering vehicles, humanitarian aid shipments and other essential resources, as well as implementing recovery and reconstruction projects in Ukraine.

An Inclusive and Supportive Society in Latvia
We promote the inclusion, participation and representation of Ukrainian civilians in Latvia. In cooperation with partner organizations, we also provide support to socially vulnerable people and groups at risk of social exclusion in Latvia.

Civil Protection and Societal Resilience
We develop the competencies of the organization and its volunteers so that we can meaningfully contribute to society’s preparedness for and response to crises, in cooperation with NGOs, state institutions and other partners.

WHAT ENABLES US TO DO THIS?

An Active Volunteer Community
We build and maintain a community where people with diverse experiences and skills can find meaningful ways to get involved and help.

A Professional and Sustainable Organization
We strengthen our team, partnerships, project management and funding model so that assistance can be organized effectively, professionally and over the long term.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Since February 26, 2022, we have been actively involved in supporting Ukrainian citizens both in Latvia and Ukraine, as well as at the borders of various countries.
Initially, we delivered humanitarian aid to the Ukraine-Poland border using cars and passenger buses, providing warmth and hot meals to people standing in long lines.
At the same time, we transported Ukrainians who had fled Ukraine back to Latvia. In total, we have brought over 5,000 Ukrainians to Latvia.
When the refugee flow at the border decreased, we shifted our focus to organizing large shipments of humanitarian aid to the most affected areas of Ukraine.
In total, we have sent humanitarian aid worth around 7 million euros, totaling approximately 10,000 m³ in volume.
At the “Tavi Draugi” humanitarian aid point in Riga, located at Lapeņu iela 23, donations are received, sorted, and humanitarian aid is distributed both on-site and prepared for shipment to Ukraine.
Here, over 27,000 distributions of essential items (clothes, hygiene products, food, household goods, etc.) have been made to Ukrainian refugees.
From October 2022 to the end of December 2023, we also provided support to refugees at the Latvia-Russia border, where we met people who had been waiting for hours or even days to be allowed into Latvia. We assisted Ukrainians by providing hot meals, drinks, dry clothes, internet access, rest areas, and information about their next destination.
Since the start of support at the border points, we have helped over 45,000 Ukrainian refugees.
The number of volunteers in the organization has reached around 5,000, and we are grateful to each of them for their help! The core of our team consists of 20 people from Latvia and an equal number of volunteers from Ukraine.
We are proud to have received the “Riga Citizen of the Year” award from the Riga City Council in 2022, as well as other accolades.

DOCUMENTS

The charity organization “Tavi draugi” has been granted Public Benefit Organization (PBO) status. Therefore, anyone who donates to “Tavi draugi” may benefit from tax deductions, subject to the applicable legal provisions.