What’s happening in Ukraine is terrible and feels very very close to home. But as much as doomscrolling Twitter for every little update and checking the news obsessively feels like doing something, it’s most definitely not.

My wife and I have already donated funds to aid organizations and individuals we know in Ukraine, so today I took some other actions in solidarity.

First up was writing my elected officials at their websites, urging them again to support Ukraine with all the resources available. It took all of fifteen minutes to write a personal plea at the websites of my member of Congress, New York’s senators, and the White House.

Next was lunch at Streecha with my stepdad. Many folks are supporting Ukraine by patronizing local Ukrainian-owned businesses and we wanted to do the same…in the most delicious way possible.

Lastly, I went to a rally for Ukraine in Times Square. There were several hundred people when I arrived and more came while I was there. It was very spirited and the crowd was a diverse mix of people.

We’re only in the very early stages of what’s going on in Ukraine and what happens next is anyone’s guess.

What we do know, however, is that Ukraine is a democracy fighting for its very existence against a ruthless authoritarian regime. Those of us lucky enough to be living in other democracies have a duty to stand with them.