I received an award today. It belongs to Ukrainians.

 

Today I am in Kyiv. And I have to be honest with you, I am overwhelmed. President Zelenskyy has honored me with the “National Legend of Ukraine," an award given around Ukrainian Independence Day that recognizes exceptional contributions to Ukraine and its people. It is one of many humbling moments I’ve experienced here in this country. But I need to say something clearly, and I need you to hear it: this award does not belong to me. It belongs to all the Ukrainians who started cooking for their neighbors immediately after the full-scale invasion and have not stopped since. It belongs to the drivers who move through darkness and danger to deliver meals to families who have nowhere else to turn. It belongs to the volunteers who showed up when everything was chaos and stayed long after the cameras left. It belongs to the Ukrainian cooks, the Ukrainian community leaders, the Ukrainian people who turned their grief into action and their kitchens into lifelines. And it belongs to you. Because none of this happens without the people who believe in this work enough to support it. More than four years ago, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion, our teams were there within hours. Not days. Hours. We have never left. And today, I can tell you that together we have served 300 million meals to families impacted by this war. 300 million. I cannot say that number out loud without thinking of every single person behind it. Over the past few days I visited WCK distribution sites here in Ukraine. I looked into the eyes of the families coming through our lines. I stood in the kitchens where our teams have been cooking, day after day, for years. And I want to tell you what I saw, because it’s important that the world knows. The need is still there. It has not stopped. And neither have we. These are not families on the edge of recovery. These are families still in survival mode. People are navigating displacement, loss, and a war that has no end in sight. The strength of the Ukrainian people is extraordinary. But strength alone cannot feed a family. I am asking you to stand with the people who refuse to give up on their homes, their families, and their country. Your gift today puts food directly in the hands of families who have no other way to eat. SUPPORT FAMILIES IN UKRAINE Here is what your gift can provide: I love Ukraine. I love its people. I love the strength I see every single time I walk through one of our kitchens here. This award means everything to me because of what it represents: the power of people coming together, across borders, across languages, around a shared table. Slava Ukraini. 🇺🇦 José Andrés WCK Founder