Ukraine

San Francisco-based company to open mental health center in Ukraine

NBC Universal, Inc.

A San Francisco-based company has announced new efforts to help make sure people in Ukraine are not forgotten.

JustAnswer is set to open a new pediatric mental health center in Lviv’s St. Nicolas Children’s Hospital.

The center will be providing a space for hundreds of thousands of children who have been traumatized by the ongoing war with Russia.

Recent data shows at least 500 children have been killed and over 1,000 injured since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

JustAnswer CEO Andy Kurtzig said the company is hoping to make a difference.

"It's teens suffering PTSD and any war-related conditions that are going on, so kids are suffering from that as well because family members and friends are dying or being injured by this terrible war," he said.

The war has become personal for JustAnswer, which has 260 employees working from Ukraine. Kurtzig said many of those employees have been drafted and some have volunteered to fight.

"We have lost one of our employees last October...and are really fighting to keep as many of our folks safe over there as possible," Kurtzig said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to visit the White House Tuesday as Congress battles over funding for his country and for Israel.

Kurtzig said his company and its employees hope Congress will move forward with more aid.

The company recently opened a similar mental health facility for adults.

Donations for both facilities can be made at jaxfund.org.

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