Our history
Help Journal was founded in 2004 by a group of volunteers with the goal of improving access to medical care for gravely ill
children in former Soviet countries (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Moldova,
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Tajikistan, Kirghizstan, and Turkmenistan). It started out as a blog on Livejournal.com. In record time,
Livejournal bloggers donated $11,000 for a prosthesis for our first young patient, Slava Pestikov, who had lost his leg to cancer.
Following this accomplishment, the community grew in size and in scope of it's activities. In 2005, The Help Journal was registered
as a US charity and received a 501 (k) status under the IRS guidelines. Presently, we raise money for children and young adults suffering
from cancer, cystic fibrosis and other serious diseases requiring costly treatment.
Since it's inception in 2004, The Help Journal has raised money for treatment and rehabilitation of over 60 children and young adults.
How we help
The money raised is used to pay for necessary medical procedures (including but not limited to surgery, chemotherapy,
diagnostic imaging, radiation therapy and rehabilitative therapy), medical equipment, medications, as well as for living and travel
expenses incurred by patients and their families seeking medical treatment away from home. Funds are transferred directly either to the patients' accounts
or to the accounts of hospitals or other medical facilities providing treatment. When the funds are issued to the patients or their families, they are required to keep
accurate records of the their use.
Through a network of volunteers, we communicate with young patients, their families and physicians, and assist them in identifying
and contacting medical facilities outside their country of residence so that they could receive the kinds of effective treatment that
are unavailable in their home countries. Requests for financial assistance are reviewed by our Board of Directors that includes
doctors and other medical professionals. While we would like to help as many young patients as possible, preference may be given
to applicants who are in extreme financial need and/or who have languished in their country’s medical care system and are in dire need
of treatment at a better facility outside their country.
Our partners
With many life-threatening conditions such as cancer, the cost of required treatment is quite substantial,
and the treatment is needed urgently. In such cases, we often join efforts with other charitable foundations in order to raise
the needed sum as quickly as possible. Our long-term partners include Advita and Grant Life foundations in Russia, and Advita USA foundation in the USA.
However, even when we work in collaboration with other organizations, each patient or his family submit their request
for financial assistance directly to the Help Journal, where it is reviewed by our Board of Directors. The financial contribution of
the Help Journal is forwarded either to the patients family or transferred directly to the medical facility that is providing the treatment.
For more information about our foundation, please contact us by e-mail
or write to us at The Help Journal, 10 Waterside Plaza, Apt #35D, New York, NY, 10010, USA.
To learn about different ways you can help our young patients, please visit How to Help page.
Become a fan: 