Emergency Backpack: Caring for Children in War

1. Context and Rationale

As Ukraine continues to face the devastating consequences of war, millions of children are experiencing disrupted education, displacement, and loss of stability. For children in family-type orphanages, special schools, and displaced households, the challenge is particularly acute: without access to basic school supplies, safe learning environments, and psychosocial support, their right to education and equal opportunities is gravely compromised.

Our project responds directly to these urgent needs. By equipping children with essential learning and creative tools, ensuring that shelters are suitable for education during air raids, and providing psychosocial support resources, we are working to safeguard not only their academic progress but also their dignity, emotional resilience, and future prospects.

2. Overall Impact (June–September 2025)

During the reporting period, our project reached over 250 children across 19 institutions in nine regions of Ukraine.

Key Data:

• Total institutions supported: 19

• Total children supported: 247

• Total value of assistance provided: ≈ $7,000 USD

3. Geographic Coverage

The project provided aid across a wide geographic footprint, ensuring inclusivity and equity of access:

• Central Ukraine: Kyiv, Cherkasy, Poltava

• Northern Ukraine: Sumy, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr

• Western Ukraine: Rivne, Khmelnytskyi

• Southern Ukraine: Mykolaiv

This distribution highlights our ability to respond to both frontline-affected and host communities, reaching displaced children as well as those in specialized institutions.

4. Beneficiary Profiles and Institutions Supported Family-Type Homes for Orphans and Displaced Families

We provided assistance to more than a dozen family-type orphanages, many hosting displaced children from the most war-affected regions (Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson). Examples include:

• DBST Luchezka (Kyiv region): 9 children displaced from Donetsk, received full creative kits (paints, clay, markers, drawing albums).

• DBST Minchenko (Sumska → Kyiv region): 10 children from displaced families.

• DBST Tarusina (Donetsk → Kyiv region): 10 children displaced from Kramatorsk.

These homes are lifelines for children who have lost their homes and communities, and school supplies here double as therapeutic resources for coping with trauma.

Special Educational Institutions

• Denishivska Special School (Zhytomyr region): 88 children received a comprehensive package including notebooks, geometry sets, art supplies, and drawing albums. For children with special educational needs, these resources are essential not only for learning but also for cognitive and emotional development.

Local NGOs and Community Partners

• NGO “Seven Fields” (50 children): Supported to expand community-based access to educational and creative resources.

Other Family Homes Across Regions

Support ranged from smaller households (4–8 children) to larger DBSTs hosting up to 11 children each. Many families were displaced multiple times before finding temporary stability in safer regions, which increases both their vulnerability and their reliance on external aid.

5. Types of Support Provided

Our “Full Portfolio” approach ensures that each child receives not just basic school items but also tools for creativity, resilience, and self-expression. Items distributed included:

• Educational Materials: exercise books (lined, squared), drawing albums, white/colored cardboard, geometry sets (including compasses).

• Creative Resources: watercolor paints, modeling clay, markers, colored pencils, craft paper.

• Psychosocial Tools: art therapy materials that help children express emotions, reduce stress, and foster resilience.

This multi-dimensional support aligns with the European standards of inclusive and holistic education, ensuring that children’s academic, emotional, and creative needs are met simultaneously.

6. Psychosocial and Emotional Outcomes

Beyond physical supplies, the project plays a vital role in strengthening children’s psychosocial well-being. Access to creative resources allows children to process their emotions, build resilience, and develop a sense of normalcy in an otherwise disrupted life. 

Children and caregivers repeatedly express their gratitude, sharing that these resources bring joy, hope, and a sense of being remembered. Teachers and guardians note that children are more motivated, engaged, and emotionally stable when they have the tools to learn and create.

7. Challenges and Remaining Needs

While we have achieved significant progress, challenges remain substantial:

• Scale of demand: Over 2,000 children are still awaiting assistance.

• Funding gap: Approximately $25,000 USD is urgently required to cover these unmet needs.

• Sustainability: Continuous replenishment is needed, as children consume school supplies quickly and shelters require ongoing equipping.

Without further support, children risk facing renewed barriers to education, exclusion from safe learning environments, and heightened psychosocial stress.

The summer months of 2025 have shown both the resilience of Ukrainian children and the profound impact that donor-supported interventions can have. 

However, our mission is far from complete. Thousands of children remain in need, and the future of their education—and their emotional well-being—depends on our collective response.

We invite you to continue standing with Ukraine’s children:

• Ensure safe and uninterrupted education during crisis.

• Create equal opportunities for every child to learn and grow.

• Support psychosocial recovery through creative and emotional resources.

On behalf of the Blagomay Charity Fund, and from every child whose life has been touched by your generosity, we extend our deepest gratitude. Your support does not only change lives—it saves them!

Together, we are building a foundation for hope, resilience, and a brighter future for Ukraine’s most vulnerable children.