LEHI, Utah — It has been nearly 14 months since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Tetiana Ashley is a native of Crimea who now lives in Vineyard.
"We share the same traditions, the same food, so I would never believe that would happen," said Ashley.
That was Ashley's first thought when she saw her homeland being invaded by Russia in February of last year.
Now, she worries many have forgotten about the ongoing war.
"Some people have an attitude, almost like, 'I've had enough,'" said Ashley. "If you just spoke to one person from Ukraine and hear what they are going through, you would never be able to ignore it."
Since last spring, Ashley has volunteered her time helping Wrap The World With Quilts in Lehi, a non-profit charity dedicated to gathering and sending quilts to Ukrainian refugees in Ukraine, Poland, Moldova and Romania.
"We've gotten quilts from all 50 states and six different countries that want to help give some comfort to the Ukrainian refugees," said Gina Halladay, one of the founders of the organization.
As of Monday, that amounts to more than 26,000 quilts.
"This many quilts is about 32 tons and it covers about 12 acres if you were to lay them all out," said Halladay.
It's something Halladay never imagined when they started collecting quilts in March of last year.
"We really thought we would collect a couple hundred," she said.
She says the quilts are important because it shows Ukrainian refugees that people around the world still care about them during a tough time.
"We send a message with every quilt that just says: 'We see you and we're hoping the best for you and your country,'" said Halladay.
Wrap The World With Quilts has evolved over the past year. The organization originally started at Halladay's home and has since moved to an office space in Lehi.
They even made a trip to Krakow, Poland last September where they hand-delivered more than 3,000 pounds of quilts, fabric and sewing supplies.
"To go to that refugee center and be able to have our armfuls of quilts and be able to pass them out to the refugees and to children and be able to give them a warm hug of love... it was life-changing," said Jan Crays, a volunteer with Wrap The World With Quilts.
The hope is this warm gesture will continue to brighten the spirits of those Ukrainian refugees dealing with the impact of the war.
"When I see how many quilts Gina and this organization collected, that's how many lives they actually touch," said Ashley.
Halladay told FOX 13 News they will be headed out on another humanitarian trip to Poland in May. She says they will be taking 30 people with them to hand-deliver quilts and do some sewing workshops.
