Help Ukraine's refugees to make a new start

Our dear friends!

Past three months were marked by Christmas and New Year celebrations that we tried to make as joyful as possible for our beneficiaries. In order to make it more personalized and effective, we visited few families, congratulating them with holidays, communicating with parents and giving gifts to children. Together summing up the results of the year 2016 we were glad to mark some improvement in our beneficiaries lives. Someone was able to find job, someone - to solve the problem with living place, some - the problem with school.

Marking St. Nicholas Day, on December 17, Women’s Federation organized charity bazaar for three people with disabilities, particularly for refugee child Danilo with Cerebral palsy. An All-Ukrainian newspaper “Family times” highlighted Danilo and his mother’s story and WFWP aid to them.

During winter school vacation, in cooperation with All-Ukrainian organization on IDP affairs, we as usually held few art-therapy classes for IDP children and organized free circus visiting for IDP families with many children.

Providing assistance on integration for IDP families, sometimes we feel that actually it is them who gives us energy, inspiration and desire to live. One such inspiring family is Igor and Natalia. They escaped from Donetsk with their three sons. They took such decision after Igor and his mother were wounded under fire in the car going from mother's village in the Donetsk region. Family urgently moved to Slavyanogorks that already had many refugees from Donetsk. Children went to the only school in village where 60 children were studying in one class. After a year they moved to Kiev. Igor is doing his best to maintain the family. Natalia is working as a dermatologist at Children's Hospital with a very small salary. The only facilities the family could arrange are for utilities. Despite all the difficulties that this family has been facing, they keep amazing cheerfulness, hospitality and sociability.

Thank you so much that your support makes lives of refugees families in Ukraine better and more hopeful!

Links:

• Gratitude from All-Ukrainian organization on IDP affairs
• Article in All-Ukrainian newspaper about helping refugee child
• Charity bazaar

Our dearest friends!

We are glad to share with you the latest news about our project for internally displaced families in Ukraine that is going on thanks to your sincere support.  

As September was marked by the academic year beginning in Ukraine, it was our main focus for autumn integration work with IDP families. We really wanted to help our beneficiaries to smoothly enter the stressful time of academic year beginning. Especially for refugees it is many times connected with difficulties in adapting to new school, establishing relationships with new teachers, the impact of a heavy psychological climate in the family on the children progress.

So we conducted a series of integration workshops for internally displaced parents on a topic, discussing all possible challenges that new academic year can bring. And on September 13 we organized holiday for IDP families and large families, together with Kiev City family center. We congratulated 50 children with new academic year by bright concert, banquet and providing them with sets of necessary school supplies.

One of our beneficiaries that faced many challenges with new academic year is Victoria and Pavel family. They moved from Donetsk City after war started and moved first to Berdyansk City, then to Kyiv with their three children: 10 years old Alisa, 7 years old Vadim and 3 years old Maksym. Father has second group of disability, but he has to work hard now in construction company seeing his family only once a week. All children are sick with bronchial asthma, that’s why wife Victoria has to stay home.

Children went through many difficulties changing few schools during one year. Daughter Alisa and son Vadim felt everyday discomfort because of teachers’ constant emphasizing that children were from Donetsk. Alisa says she misses her first school in Donetsk, her school mates, and wants to come back, but her school was bombed. Alisa is talented artist but she has heart sickness.

And on September 18, Women’s Federation became a co-organizer of Father’s Day held on a main street of the Ukraine capital. The action was organized on a City level by Kiev City administration. Women’s Federation took special care about IDP families, preparing gifts for children, letters of gratitude for fathers of many children and holding bright master-classes for families.     

Thank you once again for all your help and have a very happy Christmas holidays!

Links:

• Father's Day in the capital main street