Themes by tag: children

Surgeons of Lviv’s St. Nicholas Children’s Hospital rescued 13-year-old Sviatoslav from Lysychansk. A 4-cm long shell fragment passed through his neck and chest to get stuck in the boy’s lungs. According to surgeons, this wound is mortal. They considered it a miracle that Sviatoslav had not died on the spot. The surgery was very complicated – because an entire lung was affected – but successful.

According to Sviatoslav’s mother, Olena Rychkova, the boy was wounded in May near his home in Lysychansk.

Their family had also been affected by the russian invasion earlier. Sviatoslav’s older brother, who had lived with his family in Boiarka in Kyiv Oblast, vanished in March when russians attacked the region. The family has not heard from or about him so far.

• casualties
• children
• doctors
• Lviv

Oleh Skavysh, also known as Tiahnyzub (Mr. Tug-Tooth) in Ukraine, has been treating internally displaced children in Ukraine’s west since the start of the russian invasion. Oleh works as a pediatrician for Western Ukrainian Specialized Medical Center for Children and, together with his mobile crew, makes house calls to shelters for people who had to flee their homes due to the war. He claims his little patients are not afraid of a huge tattooed strongman.

By way of background information: Oleh “Tiahnyzub” Skavysh is known for lifting and tugging various heavy objects with his teeth. In 2018, his achievements made it to the Guinness World Records. He pulled a 614-tonne cargo vessel for over 16 meters.

• casualties
• children
• doctors
• Lviv

In March, 14-year-old Serhii from the village of Yahidne in Chernihiv Oblast was seriously wounded during the occupation of the village. Without parental permission, the russians brought the boy to a hospital in Belarus. The mother did not know where her son was for several weeks. Later, the family saw a Facebook post where Serhii had been looking for his parents. However, a new problem emerged—the boy could have been declared an orphan and placed in an orphanage in Belarus. In this case, he would not have been able to leave the neighboring country until reaching the age of majority. The Ukrainian officials and concerned ordinary people joined their efforts to bring Serhii back home.

• casualties
• children
• occupation
• Chernihiv

Volodymyr Brychka, a volunteer from Rivne Oblast and the pastor of a local church, rescued 1,800 people. For instance, he evacuated over 50 children from an orphanage in Vorzel. The children were shelled by invaders for almost a month. Volodymyr also delivers humanitarian aid. People from his village decided to nominate him for the highest national title—Hero of Ukraine.

Volodymyr is 67 years old. He has 12 own children and two adoptive children, and 43 grandchildren.

• casualties
• children
• volunteers