Supporter Spotlight: Jacob Onufrychuk
For Jacob Onufrychuk, Chair of the Board of USA for UNFPA, the decision to support UNFPA is intellectual and emotional. He and his wife, Martine Hyde Onufrychuk, were seeking organizations that prioritize sexual and reproductive health and rights. UNFPA’s work ensuring women and girls safe, healthy, and empowered at every stage of their lives aligned with the couple’s philanthropic goals.
The emotional connection occurred when Martine was about to give birth to their daughter Lyra, who is now three. Both she and Jacob realized how fortunate they were. Jacob explains: “It occurred to me that Martine and I had every reason to expect that two people would enter the delivery room and three would leave. In the countries where UNFPA works, that reality is far from a given. In that moment, we drew the line between the logical reasons we support UNFPA and our personal experience.”
Jacob’s hope for Lyra and his son Ronan, who is six, is that they grow up in a world that meets them where they are—in the same way that UNFPA helps women, girls, and babies from birth to adulthood. Through his support of UNFPA, he’s doing everything in his power to help create that world. And to you and your fellow donors, Jacob’s message is: “Thank you. It’s an honor to do this work with you!