'A huge response': St. Albert restaurant serves hundreds of perogies during fundraiser for Ukraine

Taste of Ukraine volunteers and staff prepare plates of perogies to in support of the humanitarian aid appeal for Ukraine (CTV News Edmonton/Brandon Lynch).

A family restaurant in St. Albert has been grilling hundreds of kovbasa sausages and making perogies Sunday to raise funds for Ukrainian humanitarian aid.

Taste of Ukraine organized the perogies in the parking lot fundraiser. With snow falling, organizers moved the event inside the restaurant.

For $20, people received a plate of perogies, sour cream, kovbasa sausage, and all the fixings.

Orysia Wozniak, one of the organizers and owner of Taste of Ukraine, said the entire cost per plate would be donated to the humanitarian appeal.

She estimated there was enough food to fill 1,700 plates of food. People were lined up around the restaurant and down the block, with some just donating money without buying any food.

"It's phenomenal that we've seen such a huge response," Wozniak told CTV News Edmonton. "These are not just people who like perogies. These are not just people who support Taste of Ukraine.

"These are people who support the people in Ukraine who are going through hell," she added. "Standing and waiting in the snow is nothing compared to bombs falling on your building."

Orysia Wozniak, who has family in Ukraine, said staff and volunteers came together to do what they could to help raise funds for the war-torn country (CTV News Edmonton/Brandon Lynch).

Wozniak said the event is scheduled to go until 6 p.m. Sunday, or until they run out of perogies.

For Cindy Jacobs, waiting in line to get some delicious food while supporting a good cause was a no-brainer.

"It (the invasion) is something that should not be happening in this day and age," Jacobs said.

"Any way, shape or form that we can help out, we've gotta do it. As humans, we have to stand together."