Question: Wars are terrible enough when it’s soldier versus soldier but this is too much. I watch those defenseless children hiding underground and I wish there was something I could do instead of just watching it all happen on the news.

Answer: Your comments reflect the anguish we’ve heard from other Kokua Line readers, particularly because Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put so many civilians in peril — attacks that one reader described as a “heinous onslaught.”

As for what you and others can do, there are many humanitarian relief efforts underway, but be careful to support a reputable, effective group. Charity-­monitoring services such as the BBB Wise Giving Alliance (www.give.org) and Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org) each recommend about two dozen possibilities, a few of which we’ll mention below.

Any group you choose to support should be present in Ukraine or a country accepting refugees, have experience working in or near war zones and be logistically adept at delivering emergency aid, said Roseann Freitas, spokeswoman for the Better Business Bureau’s Great West and Pacific Region. Donate money, she said, not clothing, food or other goods, because “from this far away, financial donations are the most direct way to help. Logistics on the ground are complex. The experienced charities on the ground know what they need to do to help people and they need the money to do it.”

If you want to claim a tax deduction for your donation, you must choose a U.S.-qualified charitable organization (which includes many international relief organizations) and your donation can’t go toward buying weapons or ammunition, Freitas said.

Here are a few organizations highly rated by both the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and Charity Navigator that have Ukraine humanitarian relief efforts underway. They meet the standards Freitas described:

>> Global Giving: globalgiving.org

>> CARE USA: https://www.care.org

>> Americares Foundation: https://americares.org

>> Catholic Relief Services: https://www.crs.org

>> Direct Relief: directrelief.org

>> International Medical Corps: internationalmedical corps.org

>> International Rescue Committee: https://www.rescue.org

>> Save the Children: savethechildren.org

Find more possibilities on the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and Charity Navigator websites.

Q: Did they say we could order more tests from that free site?

A: Yes, but not until next week, according to covidtests.gov. U.S. households were initially limited to a single order containing four COVID-19 tests, but that will expand next week to allow a second order of four tests per residential address, the website says.

Q: Regarding the Oahu Homeowner Assistance Fund, what is the income cutoff for eligibility?

A: Total annual household income at or below 100% Area Median Income, which ranges from $84,600 for a one-person household to $159,500 for an eight-person household, according to the program’s website. For a household of four, 100% AMI is $120,800, it says.

Q: Do they look at your savings too?

A: Yes. To be eligible, a household cannot have more than five months of housing expenses in liquid assets, the website says. Read more at https://www.hawaiiancouncil.org/ oahuhome.

Auwe

If they aren’t going to ticket all the Teslas that go around without a front license plate, they might as well change Hawaii’s law so that none of us have to do it. — Frustrated driver

(As this complaint indicates, Hawaii law requires cars to have front and back license plates. Some states require only one license plate. Some Tesla models don’t come with a front-plate mount, and the owner is supposed to install one.)

Mahalo

I need to use a cane so that I don’t fall. Thank you very much to the cars for letting me cross the street. — Pedestrian

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.