Eight Times. One Mission.Back to Ukraine.
Help Tom Verner and Carlos López bring hope, joy, and the power of magic to children living through war.
The War Is Still There. So Are We.
The missiles are still falling. The air raids still sound. The children who were six years old when Russia's full-scale invasion began are now ten — and they have never known a year without war. The world, largely, has moved on. We have not.
This May, Tom Verner — Founder of Magicians Without Borders — and Carlos López, our Global Programs Director, are heading to Ukraine for the eighth time since the war began. Eight trips. Unforgettable performances. Countless children who were reminded, even for just an hour, that joy is still possible.
We're going back. And we'd love your help getting there.
Who We Are
Magicians Without Borders uses the art of magic as a form of psychological first aid. We travel to places where people are hurting — refugee camps, orphanages, cancer wards, shelters for displaced families — and we bring wonder. We've performed on five continents. But Ukraine has become our most sustained and deeply personal commitment.
We don't do one-off shows and leave. We build relationships. We come back. We go deeper. And with each trip, the connections we've made allow us to reach more children in more meaningful ways.
What We'll Do on Trip #8
This 21-day journey runs May 7–27, 2026, through Krakow (Poland), Kyiv and Lviv (Ukraine), and Bucharest (Romania). Here's what we'll be doing:
🇺🇦 Kyiv — Deepening Our Roots
Our liaison Mariana — a Kyiv school teacher who has helped us organize two previous trips — is the reason our work in Kyiv is possible. She has opened doors into schools, orphanages, and community organizations that we never could have reached on our own.
The performance schedule in Kyiv is full:
- Two primary school shows + a magic workshop for children aged 6–11
- Two more school shows for slightly older students
- National Cancer Institute — Dacha House: a show for children undergoing cancer treatment and their families. These kids are fighting two impossible things at once. We'll give them an hour of wonder.
- ELEOS Shelter — a show for mothers and children displaced by the conflict
- WorldSchool — a show and two workshops
- "Our Kids" Orphanage — a magic workshop for the children who live there
🇺🇦 Lviv — Relaunching Our Education Chapter
The most exciting new element of this trip is a three-day magic workshop intensive at our partner organization 3D Charity (@3d.charity). We've performed for their children before — but this time, we go further.
Over three full afternoons, Tom and Carlos will teach these kids enough magic to put on a real performance of their own. On the final day, there will be a graduation ceremony and a showcase performance — children who have lived through war, standing up and performing magic for an audience of the charity's benefactors.
What We Need From You
Our major costs are already covered: international flights, buses, overnight trains within Ukraine, and all hotel accommodation are fully funded.
What we're asking for help with are the daily realities of being in the field:
- Food for Tom and Carlos: ~$65/day × 21 days = $1,365
- Local transport (Uber/Bolt to schools, hospitals, workshops): ~$15/day × 21 days = $315
Why It Matters
When you're living under the threat of bombs, the word "magic" can sound frivolous. But we have learned, trip after trip, that it is anything but.
The moment a child's eyes go wide at a trick — that moment of pure wonder, of complete presence, of the world feeling bigger and more full of possibility — is a moment their nervous system gets a genuine break from fear. Research on trauma-informed play confirms what we see in every child's face: joy is medicine.
We have now made eight of these trips. Each one builds on the last. Each relationship we've deepened makes the next trip more impactful. Mariana in Kyiv. Kateryna at 3D Charity in Lviv. The teachers, the doctors, the shelter coordinators. They are all part of our extended family now.
Help us go back. Help us keep showing up.
With gratitude,
Tom Verner, Founder & Carlos López, Global Programs Director
Magicians Without Borders