Over 200 children of Ukrainian defenders rehabilitated in Georgia

The Children Want Peace project, founded in 2017 to provide moral and psychological support to young Ukrainians whose parents are defending or have defended Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity, has rehabilitated more than 200 children of Ukrainian servicemen in Georgia.

Lilia Grychulevych, founder and coordinator of the Children Want Peace project, told this during a briefing at the Ukraine-Odesa Media Center.

“For six years now, we have been taking Ukrainians aged 10-16 to Georgia. These are children whose parents are fighting to defend Ukraine. There are children of fallen heroes or missing persons. Children who have been under fire and are constantly under stress. From the very beginning, we had the idea that our children should communicate with Georgian children who also survived the war in 2008. But those children have already grown up, and ours have been in the war for almost ten years,” said Ms. Lilia.

Usually, she gathers problematic children of our defenders, who find it difficult to even talk and be in society – the stress of the war is so great. A group of ten such children travels to Georgia. The program includes not only recreation, but also communication, social adaptation, work with psychologists, and familiarization with the culture, history, and traditions of Ukrainian-friendly Georgia.

“The goal of the project is to improve the physical, moral, and emotional state of young Ukrainians. It also aims to develop “people’s” diplomacy between Ukrainian and Georgian children. When children feel the support of ordinary Georgian peers, they gradually come to their senses. They feel that we are not the only ones fighting for our independence. That this struggle makes sense. Children broaden their horizons. They learn to know another friendly country and understand other people. All of this heals souls and gives them faith in the future,” summarized Lilia Grychulevych.

The project is supported by the Embassy of Ukraine in Georgia. The program of the children’s stay in Sakartvelo is full of visits to historical sites, museums, theaters, as well as a delphinium and an amusement park. The project includes patriotic events with veterans of the Russian-Georgian war.

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