Two sisters have found a way to help their homeland of Ukraine, all the way from Washington, D.C.
Vira Derun and Anastasiia Derun own D Light Cafe & Bakery in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. Their parents and grandmother live near Kyiv, and the sisters are accepting donations at their bakery that directly assist families in Ukraine. Customers have been standing in long lines so they can make purchases and donations, and in the first week, the bakery raised $7,000.
Her mother is "not an emotional woman," Vira told ABC News, but she cried after learning about the donations. "She thanks everyone," Vira added. "She's like, 'Please say how appreciative we are with that and see how much you're heroes that you're helping us.'"
Customer Bill Lammers has been going to the D Light Cafe & Bakery since it first opened, and told ABC News that "with COVID, we've seen a lot of people hurting, but this one being so specific with the war, a lot of people have come up and stepped up." The bakery has also seen an uptick in new customers, including American University student Reagan Bauer.
"As college kids, we don't have that much money to donate," Bauer said. "Just coming to Ukrainian-owned businesses is a great way for us to support the cause."