University of Windsor students helped to raise more than $20,000 to build homes for needy families in Serbia and Montenegro — just in time for Orthodox Christmas.

On Serbian Orthodox Christmas, the Association of Serbian Student Philanthropists announced a life-changing gift: help with a new home for impoverished families in Serbia and Montenegro.

The UWindsor club organized a fundraiser in August 2022 to kick off a campaign for Serbs for Serbs Canada, a charity that provides the poorest Serbian families with basic life necessities to enable them to become self-sufficient.

Donations continued after the event and are still coming in, totalling more than $20,000.

“We were overwhelmed and incredibly thankful to our Serbian community and Windsor community friends for coming together to support this charitable event,” said business major Petar Bratić of the Association of Serbian Student Philanthropists.

“It is a true testament to how our community can come together to make a big impact. We can’t thank our sponsors and donors enough for their generosity!”

Serbs for Serbs Canada president Angelina Račić could not be prouder of what these young leaders have accomplished.

“Our charity is made up of all volunteers and to see these Serbian students giving back to create and organize an event in such a short time that raised this amount of money is incredible,” she said. “While we hold numerous successful events throughout the year, Windsor’s surpassed all expectations and will help more than just one family.”

The UWindsor group initially intended to support the Babić family in the village of Šekular. Its home is now complete and furnished. Serbs for Serbs Canada has a policy allocating no more than $10,000 to one family, so the remainder of club funds will help additional families in need, including the seven-child Vujačić household of Budva, the four-child Matović household of Velimlje, and the four-child Slavujevic family of Jarebica.