Themes by tag: children
The latest rescue operation has brought 11 more Ukrainian children back from russian-controlled areas, thanks to the continued efforts of the Save Ukraine team and the support of the President’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative. Among those brought home are two orphans, two children of Ukrainian service members, and a family torn apart by war for nearly four years.
Marharyta, a defender with the Azov Regiment, spent more than three years in russian captivity. Her eldest son, also a soldier, left the besieged Azovstal plant with her. They were sent to different penal colonies, and for a long time, Marharyta didn’t know if her son was still alive. By chance, she saw him during a prisoner exchange, on the same bus. But she still had one wish left: to reunite with her youngest daughter, who had remained an infant under occupation. That dream has now come true. The mother is finally with her children again, and still can’t believe it’s no longer just a dream.
Ostap hadn’t seen his father, a Ukrainian soldier, in three years. His older brother, who fought alongside their father, was captured and spent 1,111 days in detention. He is now undergoing rehabilitation. For the first time in three years, Ostap was able to embrace both of them.
Anatolii, an orphan, was abducted after discovering ammunition in the woods. He was taken straight from a classroom, soldiers burst into the principal’s office, put a bag over his head, tied his hands, and dragged him to a basement, where he was beaten. Just one week before his 18th birthday, he received a draft notice. No one even considered his right to education. The occupiers gave him only one choice: to join a specific military unit. Fortunately, he was able to contact Save Ukraine in time.
Interviews with Save Ukraine representatives are available upon prior arrangement.
The rescue operation was made possible through the support of partners #WeAreAllUkrainians, Humanity Foundation, Reload Love, and the Joint Center for the Coordination of the Search and Release of Prisoners of War and Persons Illegally Deprived of Liberty as a Result of Aggression Against Ukraine. To date, Save Ukraine has returned 659 children, including 145 orphans.
This weekend and into next week, WCK will begin distributing children fruit kits in celebration of the holiday, which is observed annually on June 1. A total of 8,300 kits will be delivered across Ukraine, from Lviv to Donetsk oblast.
Each kit includes apples, pears, oranges, grapefruits, kiwis, and a colorful, WCK-branded cup — a meaningful gift to remind children that they are remembered and cared for, even in times of hardship.
The kits will be distributed in the Donetsk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv, Lviv, and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts.
Distributions will run for a week, starting May 30.
Journalists can cover the initiative by prior arrangement. Open deliveries will allow for photo and video coverage, as well as interviews with WCK teams and recipients. WCK will also provide high-quality photo and video materials for media use.
A group of students from Shpytky, a village in Bucha district, Kyiv region, is getting their hands on 3D printing to help restore their local environment. Calling themselves the Scythian team, the teenagers created a 3D printing club aimed at improving ecological conditions in their community. They plan to produce eco-bins using recycled plastic.
The students say their motivation came from witnessing the environmental impact of the war, Shpytky was on the front line during the russian invasion in 2022. The experience left the community heavily polluted, prompting the teens to take action.
Now, the team is actively collecting raw plastic materials and working hands-on with 3D printers to manufacture the eco waste tanks.
Journalists can visit the Scythian team’s workspace and cover the project by prior arrangement.
For reference: As part of the UActive program by the savED charitable foundation, teenagers from the Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Mykolaiv regions have been implementing social initiatives in communities affected by the war. The students completed a 15-week training course in project management and worked alongside mentors to develop their ideas. Through support from program partners, 10 student teams secured a total of USD 50,000 in seed funding to bring their projects to life.
A reminder: International Children’s Day is observed globally on June 1.
The “TOY THERAPY ROOM” stands as a nationwide charitable initiative established by a collective within the NGO The National Genofund amidst the full-scale invasion. Its primary aim is to mitigate the trauma endured by both children and adults impacted by russia’s invasion, achieved through the application of puppetry and play therapy techniques.
The TOY THERAPY ROOM offers a carefully designed environment where children and adults can navigate their emotions in a healthy and supportive manner. Within these spaces, carefully curated by dedicated hosts, individuals can explore their feelings, replenish their inner strength, and nurture a sense of confidence in their abilities and desires. Central to the experience are the hundreds of soft toys that inhabit each room. These toys serve not only as companions but also as conduits for understanding and healing. Participants are encouraged to select a toy at the outset of their session, which then becomes a steadfast ally throughout their journey. Beyond the confines of the therapy room, this toy becomes a transitional object through which psychologists gain insights into the person’s condition and provide assistance.
Today, the TOY THERAPY ROOM initiative operates in more than 70 locations across Ukraine, reaching nearly every region of the country, and organizing off-site therapy spaces at summer camps. Its team of psychologists also uses puppetry and play therapy techniques to support the mental health recovery of military personnel.
In 2024 alone, more than 20,000 people visited the therapy rooms, including 15,168 children and 1,400 servicemembers. The project held 5,449 therapy sessions, including mobile outreach events, and distributed over 14,000 therapeutic toys.
Spearheaded by Victoriia Nazarevich, a seasoned psychologist and the driving force behind the Nazarevich-Art psychology training portal, the project maintains a team of dedicated professionals comprising psychologists and art therapists.
For journalists seeking insight into this transformative endeavor, opportunities for interviews with project representatives and participants are available in Kyiv and other cities by prior arrangement. Additionally, online communication channels offer convenient access for those unable to attend in person.
A reminder: June 1 marks the observance of International Children’s Day worldwide.
The Voices of Children charitable foundation invites the public to witness the symbolic start of construction for the Childhood Center, a pioneering space in Ukraine dedicated to the psychological recovery of children and parents traumatized by war.
On June 5, the construction of the Childhood Center will be symbolically launched in the Kyiv oblast. The event will showcase what the center looks like from the children’s perspective and how it will look in a year. A collective message to future generations of children will be sealed in a “time capsule”.
Afterwards, a panel discussion titled “How to Save Childhood in War?” will take place. The discussion will feature the foundation’s co-founders, Olena Rozvadovska and Azad Safarov; Kateryna Rashevska, a human rights activist and expert from the Regional Center for Human Rights; Oleksandra Romantsova, a human rights activist and the executive director of the Center for Civil Liberties; Iryna Tuliakova, head of the Coordination Center for the Development of Family Upbringing and Child Care; Nataliia Masiak, a leading psychologist and psychiatrist; and children and families who are living through the difficult experience of war and undergoing recovery with the foundation.
Registration is required for the event.
Since the beginning of this school year, schoolchildren in the village of Bohdanivka, Kyiv oblast, have been able to study in a modular Temporary Educational Space (TES). The space is accessible, with a generator for uninterrupted power supply, comfortable furniture, modern tablets and multimedia panels. The TES has six classrooms and now serves 250 schoolchildren who previously had to travel to a neighboring village.
Bohdanivka was occupied in 2022. russian soldiers set up camp in the local school and burned it down when they withdrew. They also blew up the kindergarten, where they had stored ammunition, leaving the village without any educational facilities.
By prior arrangement, journalists can cover the work of the modular temporary educational space in Bohdanivka.
Background: This project is being implemented by IREX in partnership with the SavED Charitable Foundation and the GoGlobal NGO. They work in close cooperation with local communities who have lost their educational institutions due to russian aggression.
The Children of Heroes Charity Fund, in collaboration with the Ukrainian Running Club and local partners, is organizing the Run for Children of Heroes race on June 1 to commemorate World Children’s Day. The event will take place in multiple countries, including the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Germany, France, Sweden, and Ukraine.
The goal of this race is to raise funds for Ukrainian children who have lost one or both parents due to the war. 100% of the registration fees will go directly to support the Fund’s assistance programs.
Participants can choose between two distances – 5 km or 10 km.
For reference: The Children of Heroes Charity Fund provides long-term support to more than 12,500 children who have lost one or both parents in the war. Its assistance programs include psychological rehabilitation, medical care, humanitarian aid, and educational support.
On February 23, 2025, the Fund hosted Heroes Run 2025. The running event united over 400 participants across nine cities worldwide and raised more than €17,000 to support Ukrainian children. All proceeds were donated directly to the Fund.
The Grandma’s Hares project was launched four years ago by the Nasha Peremoga (Our Victory) Charitable Fund, which supports the elderly. This initiative aims to foster intergenerational communication by having participants, aged 60 and older, create hares from socks following a specific pattern. These soft toys are given to children in stressful situations, those who have suffered violence, or witnessed traumatic events. Police officers use these comforting toys to establish contact with or calm the children. For instance, the first doll hare was given to a young child who got lost and was found by the juvenile police.
Since the outbreak of the full-blown war, these toy hares have aided police officers in working with children affected by the warfare, including those who have lost parents or endured occupation. They are also distributed to children in shelters and hospitals. Additionally, hares in reflective vests have been used to teach preschoolers about traffic rules. During the winter blackouts, they provided comfort at the Points of Invincibility.
In May 2023, the elderly women crafted a special batch of brightly colored hares at the request of the White Angel unit of the National Police of Ukraine, which is responsible for evacuating children from the war zone.
Since the project’s inception, volunteer craftswomen from Kyiv, Khmelnytskyi, Lutsk, Ternopil, Mykolaiv, and Kharkiv regions have produced over 1,300 handmade doll hares, which have been distributed to the police. These toys are now used by Ukraine’s Juvenile Police across 20 regions and by the White Angel evacuation teams.
Journalists can arrange interviews with the project participants and organizers in Kyiv or other cities, and online communication is also available.
For reference: The practice of distributing Trauma Teddies to police is common in the USA, Canada, the UK, Australia, the Netherlands, and Germany.
On June 1, International Children’s Day, Lviv will host a charity auction featuring a collection of rare and high-profile items. Proceeds from the event will go toward the development and support of the children’s rehabilitation unit at St. Nicholas Hospital, part of the UNBROKEN ecosystem. The facility provides care for children recovering from serious illnesses, surgeries, trauma, burns, and war-related injuries.
Among the exclusive auction items:
- A T-shirt signed by soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo (starting price: USD 1,500);
- Original rhinestones from Michael Jackson’s iconic gloves (starting price: USD 1,200);
- A soccer ball autographed by players of the Ukrainian national team (starting price: USD 1,000);
- A facsimile of the Tomos of Autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, signed by Metropolitan Epiphanius (starting price: USD 1,000);
- A soccer ball signed by players of FC Karpaty (starting price: USD 500).
Media representatives must obtain accreditation to attend the event.
On May 25, as Ukraine’s capital celebrates the Day of Kyiv, an open cultural and educational gathering for children and parents “Nytochka” (The Little Thread) will take place. The event will feature a conversation on culture in times of war, along with a music and dance workshop led by the folk band ShchukaRyba and the Voices of Children charity foundation.
Over the past six months, the Voices of Children Foundation and ShchukaRyba have met with teenagers in frontline cities, including Kryvyi Rih, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Chernihiv, and Dnipro. A planned session in Sumy was canceled due to a russian ballistic missile strike just hours before it was set to begin. The Kyiv event will mark the final stop in the series.
Singer and poet Maryna Krut, the Ivan Honchar Museum, the Patron Pets Center, and other partners will also take part in the “Nytochka” gathering.
During the event, the Voices of Children team will share information about psychological and psychosocial support available to families and children affected by the war, and help those in need access professional assistance.
For reference: The series of cultural and educational meetings with ShchukaRyba is part of the art laboratories launched by the Voices of Children Foundation. The project helps teenagers process the trauma of war through creativity, rebuilding their confidence and sense of trust in the world.
A reminder: International Children’s Day is observed globally on June 1.
