Ukrainian Albertans create clothing lines to raise money to help combatants and those displaced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Sisters Katilynn and Alyson Makowichuk grew up dancing in Ukraine and run a website for custom clothing and items. Prior to the dispute, the two entrepreneurs decided to create a limited-edition clothing line each month, with proceeds going to a charitable cause.

“It’s absolutely devastating to see what’s happening,” Katilynn said. “We just wanted to do whatever we could to help them.”

The couple, who live in Smoky Lake, used a design of the Tryzub, the coat of arms of Ukraine, inside a Canadian maple leaf containing other Ukrainian symbols and flowers.

“It tied it all into one,” Katilynn added. “A lot of symbols and stuff there, and a lot of artwork really reminds us of traditional (Ukrainian) blouses.”

Their initial goal was to raise $500 for the Canada-Ukraine Foundation. On Thursday, they raised over $2,600.

In Sherwood Park, Kristen Wysocki, owner of Kreative Kustoms, sells Stop War shirts to raise funds for the Red Cross Humanitarian Appeal for Ukraine.

“It breaks my heart and we feel a little helpless,” she told CTV News Edmonton.

“A lot of people are looking to donate, so we decided to do shirts,” Wysocki said. “I just wanted to keep it simple and elegant, so just two simple words with a little bird in between for peace.

“I wish I could do more, but it’s really nice to see the community coming together,” she added.

After living in Kyiv last year, Natalia Kostiuk and her partner Dylan Cliff knew they wanted to help raise money to help those fighting in Ukraine.

“We wanted to do something,” Kostiuk said. “We were just stuck watching the news all day, every day.”

The duo started selling a t-shirt featuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his now-famous quote, “I need ammunition, not a round.”

After the success of this design, Kostiuk said they are now printing five more in hopes of creating more.

Their campaign supports the Friends of Ukraine Defense Forces Fund, which helps equip soldiers with equipment and bulletproof vests and supports families who have lost loved ones through military service. Kostiuk says they’ve raised $6,000 so far in just one week.

“I have memories of last year when we were in this beautiful church, and we were at this monument and we thought that all of this can be taken down and might not be there the next time we travel to Ukraine,” she said. “It’s a shame to think that all of this could be gone.”