Lee Matz, Author at Milwaukee Independent

So Long Ukraine, and Thanks for All the Hotdogs*

Posted by Lee Matz | Aug 23, 2023

As I reflect on my second assignment to Ukraine from June to July, and the corresponding news series of articles, interviews, and photo essays I produced, a flood of thoughts come to mind. One in particular involved a hotdog. I originally intended to post the image for this story to social media. As I thought about how to introduce it for context, what I wanted to say stretched beyond a simple caption. I have had the privilege and burden to see a side of Ukraine during war that no other journalist in Wisconsin has been exposed to. I have...

Hasidic life in Uman: A journey across Ukraine to the Tomb of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov

Posted by Lee Matz | Aug 4, 2023

Return to Ukraine: This feature is part of an original Milwaukee Independent editorial series that recorded news from areas across Ukraine, including Milwaukee's sister city of Irpin, from June to July of 2023. It was the second time in the span of a year that the award-winning Wisconsin news organization traveled to the country during the war. The purpose of this journalism project was to document a humanitarian aid mission by the Milwaukee-based nonprofit, Friends of Be an Angel, and report about conditions 17 months after Russia's brutal full-scale invasion. mkeind.com/returntoukraine I have written many times over the years...

Remembering Oskar Schindler: A photojournalist’s diary from the streets of Jewish Kraków

Posted by Lee Matz | Aug 4, 2023

Return to Ukraine: This feature is part of an original Milwaukee Independent editorial series that recorded news from areas across Ukraine, including Milwaukee's sister city of Irpin, from June to July of 2023. It was the second time in the span of a year that the award-winning Wisconsin news organization traveled to the country during the war. The purpose of this journalism project was to document a humanitarian aid mission by the Milwaukee-based nonprofit, Friends of Be an Angel, and report about conditions 17 months after Russia's brutal full-scale invasion. mkeind.com/returntoukraine I have spent my life only hearing about...

Wisconsin volunteers sort and pack donated medical supplies for use in Ukraine’s hospitals

Posted by Lee Matz | Aug 2, 2023

Return to Ukraine: This feature is part of an original Milwaukee Independent editorial series that recorded news from areas across Ukraine, including Milwaukee's sister city of Irpin, from June to July of 2023. It was the second time in the span of a year that the award-winning Wisconsin news organization traveled to the country during the war. The purpose of this journalism project was to document a humanitarian aid mission by the Milwaukee-based nonprofit, Friends of Be an Angel, and report about conditions 17 months after Russia's brutal full-scale invasion. mkeind.com/returntoukraine Volunteers from across Wisconsin gathered in a local...

Military Hospitals provide vital care for Ukrainian soldiers in need of hope and healing

Posted by Lee Matz | Jul 31, 2023

It was deeply moving to visit military hospitals across Ukraine. The experience offered a glimpse into the lives of wounded soldiers and their spirit. Upon entering each room was the sight of shattered bodies, left with the indelible marks of war. Their scars bore witness to terrible battles that could not be imagined.

Iryna Suslova: The superwoman saving Ukrainian children abducted by Russia

Posted by Lee Matz | Jul 29, 2023

Return to Ukraine: This feature is part of an original Milwaukee Independent editorial series that recorded news from areas across Ukraine, including Milwaukee's sister city of Irpin, from June to July of 2023. It was the second time in the span of a year that the award-winning Wisconsin news organization traveled to the country during the war. The purpose of this journalism project was to document a humanitarian aid mission by the Milwaukee-based nonprofit, Friends of Be an Angel, and report about conditions 17 months after Russia's brutal full-scale invasion. mkeind.com/returntoukraine Under the direction of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,...