Hi everyone,
I want to share a sincere thank you to our Host community. While I am not surprised by your acts of kindness and generosity, I am truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of support we are seeing from Hosts around the world as it relates to the situation in Ukraine.
So far, nearly 20,000 Hosts have expressed a willingness to open up their homes through Airbnb.org to accept those who are fleeing Ukraine. This is yet another reminder of the compassion that drives so much of our work and makes this community very special.
For those who want to help, there are two ways: either do what you do best and become a Host by signing up here, or if you are unable to host, donate to Airbnb.org’s Refugee Fund. You can also learn more about Airbnb.org and their initiatives for Ukrainian refugees during this crisis by heading to the Resource Center.
I also want to thank our Hosts for contributing your ideas and sharing such heartwarming stories across our Community Center, in various Host Clubs and with the Community Support team. We’ve been reading these carefully and sharing them with the teams here at Airbnb. I can say that our hearts are incredibly full.
Jennifer Port, our Host Advisory Board Member from Severn, Ontario shared, “This will be our second time participating in Airbnb.org.” She has found her community supportive of her decision to open her home: “If we are able to host a Ukrainian guest … the community will be rallying around to provide clothes, food, meals, rides, interpretation, employment, and the list goes on.”
This past weekend, I also learned that @Samantha744 from North Lincolnshire in Britain will soon be welcoming three generations of Ukrainian women to her home. And another member of our Host community, @Ольга146, from Zhytomyr, Ukraine, shared that she had to flee her home and this is her experience: “We were sheltered by a family member of Airbnb in Germany. I have never felt such care for such support…. Thank you for being there.”
There is so much kindness in the world and we are seeing it on full display right now. I look forward to hearing more empowering stories from you so please continue tagging me in your posts by typing @Catherine-Powell. I read them all. I learn from them and I share what I learn from our conversations.
Thinking of you all warmly at this difficult time,
Catherine