Themes by tag: casualties
In March 2024, the Seeds of Victory project by World Central Kitchen will resume its work. The organization provides seed kits to those who have land to grow vegetables but cannot purchase seeds. This program aims to help communities reach food self-sufficiency, especially in the regions most affected by the war.
This year, the project operates in Donetsk, Zaporizhia, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions. Seed kits include peas, corn, cucumbers, beets, cabbage, radishes, parsley, sorrel, squash and carrots.
For reference: In 2023, more than 165,000 seed kits were distributed throughout Ukraine as part of the Seeds of Victory project. World Central Kitchen (WCK) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that provides food to victims of natural disasters. WCK was founded in 2010 by celebrity chef José Andres, who along with his team cooked food in Haiti after the devastating earthquake. World Central Kitchen works by responding and collaborating with local chefs to address the food crisis caused by disasters.
Before the start of russia’s full-scale invasion, Maksym Shevchenko worked in car repairs. On February 24, 2022, he was in Irpin. Despite the shelling, he evacuated residents from Bucha, Vorzel, the outskirts of Hostomel and Irpin. Later, the situation got more complicated and hostilities intensified, so he could only evacuate Irpin residents. (He took them to the Romanivka Bridge, which sustained so much damage to the structure that people could only cross it on foot).
Maksym evacuated people with reduced mobility, the elderly and the wounded. Sometimes he had to carry people on his shoulders. During the evacuations, the volunteer saw corpses of the residents who died due to russian shelling. And the volunteer himself came under enemy fire several times.
Maksym filmed what was happening around him on his phone. On March 21, 2022, his own house was destroyed by an enemy strike. Before that, one of his cars had been damaged by an enemy shell. In order to take people out, he had to use the cars of his relatives, friends and ordinary residents.
Maksym continues to volunteer even now. He delivers humanitarian aid to the frontline regions.
Journalists have the opportunity to learn more and communicate with the volunteer in Kyiv region (either in person or online).
For reference: on April 2, 2022, Kyiv region was completely liberated from russian occupation. By April 6, 2022, the Defense Forces fully liberated Chernihiv region. On April 11, 2022, the then Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi announced that full control over the state border in Sumy region was restored.
Olena Yuzvak found herself under the occupation immediately after the beginning of the big war. Hostomel, a town in Kyiv region, where a doctor was staying, was captured by the russians. Olena stayed there to continue working and helping people who could not leave. Olena distributed medicine and cared for the wounded until the occupiers captured her. The doctor was released a day later, and 10 days later, the Ukrainian military liberated Hostomel. Olena immediately returned to work and began working to restore the medical institutions she managed. One of these facilities is located in Moshchun village, Kyiv region, which was destroyed by a direct hit in the shelling. With the support of international funds, Olena managed to build a new Health Center and turn it into an energy-independent Invincibility Center. The Health Center in Moshchun has been successfully operating since its opening. Currently, the doctor continues to work on the restoration and opening of modern medical facilities.
For reference: on April 2, 2022, Kyiv region was completely liberated from russian occupation. By April 6, 2022, the Defense Forces fully liberated Chernihiv region. On April 11, 2022, the then Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi announced that full control over the state border in Sumy region was restored.
The proximity to the front line does not matter for FRIDA medical volunteer mission, especially when the residents of the communities themselves are asking for doctors to come.
In the near future, a team of 9 doctors will consult patients in Donetsk region (journalists can learn more details about the settlements in question).
The team of doctors was formed in response to the requests of local residents: people need consultations by a cardiologist, a surgeon, an ultrasound technician, a gastroenterologist, a neurologist, an otolaryngologist and an ophthalmologist.
Journalists are invited to join the mission to see and film the work of doctors in difficult conditions, talk to local residents and cover the life in frontline communities
It is also possible to receive photo and video materials after the mission’s return as well as to interview doctors.
For reference: For the second year in a row, FRIDA Ukraine, the largest medical volunteer mission in Ukraine, continues with its trips to the frontline and de-occupied regions to deploy field clinics and provide specialized medical assistance on sites.
“HAB | Lviv Habilitation Center” will open in Lviv on March 7. This is an initiative of the Alliance for Public Health in cooperation with the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Center.
“HAB | Lviv Habilitation Center” is a transitional barrier-free space that provides an opportunity to safely relive the experience of war in order to move on. Veterans and civilians who have already undergone physical rehabilitation at the UNBROKEN Center and need to adapt to new living conditions will acquire new skills here.
The area of the habilitation center is 660 square meters. It has 9 rooms and 27 beds. 300 patients are to undergo habilitation there per year.
The first patients of the center were:
- Yana Kovaliova, a librarian from Avdiivka, received an injury in the hostilities, which led to the amputation of her right leg. She underwent treatment and rehabilitation at the UNBROKEN center. She is adapting to everyday life in the Lviv Habilitation Center.
- Illia Dmytryshyn, a soldier of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, was wounded while defending Ukraine. He underwent treatment and rehabilitation at the UNBROKEN center. He is focusing on adapting to the status of a veteran and a person with a disability. At Lviv Habilitation Center, Illia is working on his psycho-emotional state and on planning for the future.
During the opening, there will be an opportunity to chat with patients and specialists, as well as join a kintsugi master class to learn the art of imperfection. Patients and guests will glue broken dishes, which is a symbol that after setbacks and trials, one can become even stronger with the right support.
The Fedorchenko family from Kherson region stayed in the occupation for over a year and a half.
While still at home, Tetiana and her husband Raj (he is of Romani origin) did everything possible to avoid russian citizenship and not to send their daughter and grandchildren to a russian school. The family managed to survive hunger, rocket attacks, from which they hid in the basement, and the tyranny of the russian regime. Every day, the military went to the streets with surprise raids.
Once, a unit of russian soldiers broke into a neighbor’s place. Then a policeman approached Tetiana, who was on the street, and told her to be a “witness in the case.” And when Raj wanted to take his wife back to their yard, a machine gun was pointed at him. They shot in the air twice and again pointed the gun at him. The woman persuaded the man to go into the house and let her go to testify.
The family left the occupation in September 2023. For 4 months, they lived and received comprehensive support in the “Hope and Recovery” center of the “Save Ukraine” charitable organization. Among other things, specialists provided psychological assistance to adults and children.
Now the family lives in Poltava region. They are open to communication both in person and online.
Serhii Shpanko is 46 years old. The man joined the ranks of the Defense Forces back in 2014, when russia first attacked Ukraine. Since then, Serhii served in many positions in the army, until he was discharged and became a teacher at the Military Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology. On February 24, 2022, Serhii was in the capital, and together with the cadets he organized the evacuation of the population from Kyiv region, in particular, Bucha and Irpin. At the end of March of the same year, Serhii returned to the Armed Forces, less than a month later, he found himself in the Avdiivka sector. During one of the missions, his car came under enemy fire. Serhii’s next memory after being wounded is the hospital. The soldier received numerous facial injuries, his facial nerve was severed, his ear was torn off and his eye was damaged. Serhii has undergone many surgeries. A team of reconstructive surgeons from Canada, the U.S. and Ukraine decided to restore the functions and symmetry of his face as part of the “Face the Future” international mission. Nowadays Serhii can smile and close his eyelid. The man returned to the Institute, and now teaches cadets to use small arms.
For reference: “Face the future Ukraine” is a mission of Canadian and American reconstructive surgeons, which brings together world experts and their Ukrainian counterparts to restore physical health and aesthetic beauty of people injured in enemy shelling. They also work with servicemen who have suffered face and neck injuries on the front line.
For the second year in a row, FRIDA Ukraine, the largest medical volunteer mission in Ukraine, continues to travel to the frontline and de-occupied regions to deploy field clinics and provide specialized medical assistance on the ground.
Thus, a team of 30 doctors will work in Donetsk region. The team will consist of a surgeon, a physiotherapist, a cardiologist, a therapist, an ENT specialist, a neurologist and other specialists. The mission doctors plan to provide more than 1,500 services (ultrasound, ECG, consultations, field surgeries, etc.).
Also, medical volunteers go to orphanages in different parts of the country. For example, a team of specialists will work in the Zhytomyr regional specialized children’s home, where about 50 children need medical examination. The team consists of 18 doctors, including: a pediatrician, an ultrasound specialist, an ENT specialist, a neurologist, a psychiatrist, a surgeon and an ophthalmologist.
Journalists have the opportunity to join field missions.
Vladyslav Molodykh is a serviceman of the 71st Jaeger Brigade. The occupiers stormed the dugout, where Vladyslav and his brother in arms had been staying for 3 days. During the assault, Vladyslav Molodykh eliminated at least 6 russian invaders. Then the russians blocked the exit from the dugout with the Ukrainians. Also, the debris from a nearby house collapsed into their dugout.
The soldiers, who found themselves under the rubble, ate dry rations until they ran out. The fighters had to survive at sub-zero temperatures without food and water. They melted the snow to quench their thirst at least a little.
Later, the Ukrainians managed to make a small hole in the pile of the debris, through which Vladyslav’s brother in arms climbed out. Other defenders found him with the help of a drone. Vladyslav remained in the dugout for another two weeks. In total, he stayed underground for 41 days. In the end, the man was saved by soldiers who were looking for Vladyslav. Currently, the military man is undergoing rehabilitation in Vinnytsia region.
Additionally: Vladyslav Molodykh is ready to communicate with journalists, both online and offline, by prior agreement.
Maryna and Mykola are both military, they met in 2019 in the army. The woman had two daughters from a previous marriage — Olena and Oleksandra. Mykola also has a daughter named Milana. At first, the family lived in Mariupol, Donetsk region (now the city is occupied), then they moved to Berdiansk, Zaporizhia region (now the city is occupied).
The couple served in the Azov brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. In 2020, Mykola resigned from the Azov and joined the marines. Maryna’s contract ended in November 2021, but she did not want to leave her brothers in arms.
When the full-scale invasion began, Maryna, along with other Azov defenders of Mariupol ended up at the Azovstal plant (i.e. Iron and Steel Works where fierce battles with the enemy took place in the spring of 2022). Mykola wanted to switch with Marina and go to Azovstal instead of her. The woman persuaded him not to do this, because at the checkpoint the russians shot three guys who were on the way to meet their girlfriends, and many others who broke through to the plant went missing. Even then Maryna understood that she and other military personnel were unlikely to get out of the Azovstal alive. And she asked her husband to take care of her daughters. On May 8, 2022, the woman died in a fire at the Azovstal.
Now Mykola is fighting for the right to adopt his deceased wife’s daughters and give them a happy future. He is purchasing a three-room apartment for the girls in Kyiv region so they could live together as a family.
With the help of the Children of Heroes Fund, Maryna’s daughters received gifts and visited a rehabilitation camp, which helped them to distract themselves from terrible memories and disturbing thoughts.
For reference: the defense of Mariupol lasted 86 days. Following the order of the command, the Ukrainian defenders stopped putting up the defense, left Azovstal and surrendered to the enemy. On May 20, 2022, Mariupol was occupied by russia.
The Children of Heroes Charity Fund supports children who have lost one or both parents due to russia’s full-scale invasion. The fund offers financial aid as well as psychological and legal support. The organization helps these children with education and development until they reach adulthood.
As of the beginning of February, 7,889 wards are under the care of the Fund. Of them, 1,062 are IDPs, 151 children have lost their mother and father, 177 are children with disabilities, 970 are children from large families. Every week about 80 children are included into the list of the recipients of the fund’s help. Among the fund’s children, 88% are kids of military personnel, while the remaining 12% are civilians.
