State College Shop Sells Special Cigars to Benefit Ukraine

A State College business is using what it does best to aid Ukraine amid the invasion by Russia.

Your Cigar Den, 127 S. Fraser St., had special cigars made with custom bands that read “I stand with Ukraine,” and created the website CigarsForHumanity.com.

All profits from the sales of the special cigars are being donated to a special account created by the National Bank of Ukraine to raise funds for the Ukrainian armed forces.

“One of our customers is Ukrainian, and one of our employees is Russian,” owner Tony Ghaffari wrote in an email. “They are good friends, and both have family in the other country. Listening to them, the scope of the humanitarian crisis really hit us. The empathy they showed toward one another served as a lesson in humanity and is what pushed us into action.”

Working with Kish Bank, Ghaffari transferred $2,000 from sales of the cigars to the Ukraine account on Wednesday.

Your Cigar Den is paying the sales tax on the cigar purchases, as well as covering the expenses associated with marketing, shipping and the funds transfer so that all profits are donated directly to Ukraine.

The special Smooth Connecticut and Bold Habano cigars are still available for purchase and any additional profits will continue to go to Ukraine.

“It has been a very humbling experience to see the number of customers, both old and new, that rallied around Your Cigar Den and this effort,” Ghaffari wrote.