Themes by tag: volunteers

“Behind Blue Eyes” is a charity project encouraging children from de-occupied and front-line villages of Ukraine to film their lives on disposable film cameras, and in return, ordinary people can fulfill the wishes of young creators. The project’s team travels the country to support children’s ability to dream, despite the traumatic experience of war, and to show that creativity can be a powerful tool to make those dreams come true.

Project participants receive film cameras for a week to take pictures of whatever they want. Then the children return the film with photos to the team along with their wishlists. “Behind Blue Eyes” publishes children’s photos along with their stories on the project’s platforms, and everyone can reward the authors of the photos by choosing something from their wishlists.

For reference: “Behind Blue Eyes” project was created almost two years ago. It was created by a team of volunteers who initially took care of de-occupied villages in Chernihiv oblast. Since the project was founded, 96 children have participated in it. They have taken more than 2,500 unique photos.

• children
• volunteers

Yuriy Zhytnikov is a volunteer from Poltava region, who single-handedly assembles kamikaze drones for the front-line military from his home. When the man became interested in the production of these weapons, he had neither specialized training nor the necessary skills to do it. In the summer of 2023, Yuriy began studying drone design and watching videos on social networks to understand how they work, but he was not ready to assemble them himself. Later, the volunteer saw an advertisement for “People’s Drone” training program by Victory Drones. This is a free engineering course that offers to teach anyone to assemble a 7-inch FPV drone at home. The man bought the necessary tools and started a three-week course in November.

Yuriy resoldered his first kamikaze drone as many as 4 times, because at that point the volunteer had never held a soldering iron in his hands. The man assembled the second drone in a day. Yuriy admits that the best motivation for his work is positive feedback from the military.

• volunteers

70-year-old Olha is a teacher who takes care of 5 adopted children. Her husband is severely ill.

The village in the Kherson region where the family lived was occupied by Russia since the beginning of its full-scale invasion. The woman was living in fear of enemy military might separate her from her children, as her daughter and sons were adoptees. They managed to flee life under occupation only on the third attempt.

Now the family lives in a rented apartment. However, Olha’s brother helped them buy a plot of land in the Kyiv region. Dobrobat volunteers assisted in constructing new housing for the family. It will be a one-story eco-house made of wood. They will start building it with the onset of warm weather.

For reference: “Dobrobat” is a volunteer building division helping those affected to restore housing and social infrastructure in the de-occupied territories.

• casualties
• children
• occupation
• reconstruction
• volunteers
• Kyiv

Artur Bukevych has spent almost all his life at a hair salon, at first, as his mother used to bring her kid to a place she’d been doing her job as a hairdresser and then as he started his first barbershop in Khmelnytskyi.

In 2023, an acquaintance invited Artur to give a cut and a face shave to the military personnel at the front. Since then, the barber has been visiting the military at the front every month for frequent services. It takes him about 20 hours to cater, so he stays with the military for several days to refresh the haircut for as many soldiers as possible. In addition to haircuts, Arthur says he creates relaxing grooming sessions for the soldiers: the place where he works smells of lavender and plays music.

The barber shop Arthur opened in Khmelnytskyi is running. The business donates its income to the military. In particular, before the New Year, the barber bought and brought a Starlink satellite system to the front line for military use.

• military
• volunteers

In 2023, pizzaiolo Vitalii Koloshytsia launched the Military Chef project. The chef made a mobile oven on wheels that could be attached to a car so it would be possible to cook pizza in the field. Vitalii first tested his oven in Kyiv region, and later went to soldiers at the front lines.

Since the beginning of the project, Vitalii has also founded his own charitable foundation, which he also named “Military Chef.” And he also prepared more than 3,000 pizzas for the Ukrainian military. All expenses for such things as ingredients and car repairs are paid by the man himself out of his own pocket. He visits the front line 1-2 times a month.

With the help of the charitable fund, Vitalii plans to enlist the support of concerned citizens and expand the project: build several more mobile ovens and buy another car that can withstand longer distances.

• food
• military
• volunteers

Benjamin is a lawyer from Dusseldorf, Germany. Since the early stages of Russia’s full-scale invasion, he has been assisting the Ukrainian people. A few days ago, when the Russians struck the center of Kharkiv, at that very moment Ben was 50 meters away from the hit. But despite all he’s been through, the man still continues to engage in volunteering in Ukraine.

At one time, the German man sheltered a family from Kyiv in his own home. He also brought about 50 tons of aid to Ukrainian cities and villages. Benjamin collects and brings clothes, medicines, equipment, and water purification systems, while the Voices of Children Charitable Foundation coordinates humanitarian assistance efforts where there is particularly acute shortage. 

In addition, Benjamin repaired and equipped a room for children’s education and leisure in a dormitory for IDPs in Kharkiv.

Benjamin is currently in Kyiv and is planning to visit Lviv and Kharkiv. There is an opportunity for journalists to interview a volunteer.

• volunteers
• Kharkiv
• Kyiv

Oleksandra Chernomashyntseva was born and raised in Donetsk. The girl moved to Kyiv when russia first attacked Ukraine in 2014. And in 2018, Oleksandra went to the Czech Republic, where she entered the theater academy to study scenography.

When the full-scale invasion began, Oleksandra, who was still abroad, became a volunteer. The girl helped her compatriots evacuated by “Baza UA” NGO to settle in a new place.

Last December, Oleksandra returned to her native Donetsk region. She helped with the evacuation of Bakhmut residents and worked with local children in the bomb shelter. Since March 2023, Oleksandra has joined the team of the “Baza UA” NGO in full. And in August, she and her team set up a cultural space for teenagers called Terykon in Kramatorsk. Terykon provides a platform for artistic expression, including drawing, sculpting, and photography. Future plans include introducing programming, animation, and English lessons. Additionally, Terykon aims to offer psychological support to those in need.

• volunteers

42-year-old Lars has come from Amsterdam (the Netherlands) to help Ukrainians for the third time. For example, a year ago he volunteered in Bakhmut. Now he will spend the next two months in the Donetsk region. In particular, he and the Unbreakable volunteer team are currently drilling a water well near the front line for local residents. 

Journalists can find out more about where the Dutchman is working now and talk to him online and offline.

For reference: The Unbreakable (Nezlamni) volunteer team has set up seven front-line invincibility points. There, people can see the power on for the first time in many months, eat hot food, receive humanitarian and medical aid, do laundry, and take a shower. In addition, volunteers have opened two public laundry rooms in Donetsk Oblast. Ukrainian defenders can bring their clothes there, which will be washed, dried, and even repaired for free. The team plans to open such centers along the entire front-line zone.

• volunteers

Olena Vovk started volunteering for the military back in 2014, when russia first attacked Ukraine in the East. The woman participated in many projects aimed at the rehabilitation of servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. And in 2023, she independently took up the efforts to help the veterans to return to civilian life. Olena is a tattoo artist by profession, so she started teaching soldiers her craft. This idea came to Olena from one of her military clients who wanted to master a new profession.

Together with “Kharkiv with you” Charity Foundation and “RAZOM FOR UKRAINE” Charity Foundation, the woman started a tattoo training course for servicemen and veterans in Kharkiv. Charity foundations helped with funding, purchased equipment and consumables for training, as well as tattoo machines for the military.

Olena plans to expand the course next year and conduct training in different cities of Ukraine. In particular, she will train military personnel with leg amputations. There are also plans to help former fighters get employed in tattoo parlors.

• military
• volunteers

Red Brunch Donor Day is organized by Yanina Sokolova’s Fund. The Fund’s team encourages Lviv residents and guests of the city to make a conscious decision to donate blood, in particular, during the full-scale war. After all, donating blood is one of the opportunities to save the lives of Ukrainian defenders.

For reference: Since 2019, Yanina Sokolova’s Fund has been changing people’s stereotypes about blood donation by holding Red Brunch events. Since the initiative started, 1,743 people have donated blood, which made it possible to save 5,229 lives.

• volunteers
• Lviv