Themes by tag: women
Iryna Vlasenko is a doctor specializing in dermatology and venereology who survived the russian occupation in Melitopol (Zaporizhia region). She knows the feeling when it seems that everyone has forgotten about you. These memories motivate her to volunteer at FRIDA (the Ukrainian-Israeli medical volunteer mission). Together with other doctors, Iryna attends to patients both in the front-line regions and in the borderlands, and shows by her example that people who live there are remembered.
The trips also help her deal with her fears about her husband, who is now on the front lines. While her husband has operated a Mavic drone on over 100 missions, Iryna has gone on more than 40 trips to the front-line territories.
Journalists have the opportunity to talk with Iryna in Kyiv. There is also an opportunity to cover the volunteer trips made by FRIDA Ukraine.
For reference: FRIDA Ukraine is a Ukrainian-Israeli medical volunteer mission that aims to help the civilian population. Volunteer doctors provide Ukrainians affected by hostilities with high-quality healthcare.
Iryna Maslo is from Volnovakha, Donetsk Oblast. Today, occupants live in her house, and one of the businesses she founded was destroyed by the war. Iryna first saw the fighting in 2014, when russia started its aggression in eastern Ukraine. The woman and her family stayed in her hometown, which was 30 kilometers from the front line, and soon managed to open a shop selling patriotic souvenirs. Later, this shop turned into a store selling military equipment, as there were many soldiers in the city who needed such goods. After that, Iryna opened a household chemicals store, but had to leave the business when the full-blown war began.
Together with her children, Iryna left Volnovakha, which was later occupied by the enemy, and relocated to Pavlohrad in the Dnipro region. In this new city, Iryna sought job opportunities and eventually decided to transform her hobby into a livelihood by opening a yoga studio. She applied for a grant, used the funds to establish the studio, and began her work.
Now Iryna and her children have moved again, this time to Odesa. Here, she teaches yoga and plans to open another studio in the future.
Anastasiia Morozova serves as a pediatrician at the Okhmatdyt National Children’s Hospital and heads the Little Hearts program under FRIDA Ukraine, a Ukrainian-Israeli Medical Volunteer Mission. This program deploys multidisciplinary teams of volunteer doctors to orphanages to assess the children’s needs for medications, vaccinations, rehabilitation, and surgical interventions. Anastasiia has participated in over 20 FRIDA Ukraine missions.
On July 8, Anastasiia witnessed a russian missile attack on Okhmatdyt. She was unharmed and, along with FRIDA volunteers, helped evacuate the children, provided medical care to the victims, and assisted in clearing the rubble. The attack resulted in two fatalities and 32 injuries at the hospital.
Journalists can arrange interviews with Anastasiia and join FRIDA Ukraine missions by prior arrangement.
For reference: Since the full-scale invasion began, about 8,500 Ukrainian children have been left without parental care, over 1,500 have become orphans, and tens of thousands have lost their homes or been forced to relocate. Ukrainian children’s homes and orphanages are under immense pressure, with depleted resources and limited access to quality medical care. Through the Little Hearts project, FRIDA supports orphanages and boarding schools across Ukraine.
Artem Hondiul has held numerous roles, including fire rescuer and security guard for merchant ships against Somali pirates in the Gulf of Guinea and Oman. Eventually, he joined the National Guard and later transferred to the Azov Regiment, now part of the National Guard of Ukraine’s Azov Brigade. Artem and his wife Anastasiia moved to Mariupol.
On February 23, 2022, Artem was on duty and convinced Anastasiia to leave Mariupol, despite her reluctance. She managed to escape in late February.
Anastasiia later discovered that Artem was at “Zaliziaka” (“Piece of Iron”), an improvised hospital at the Azovstal plant, suffering from a shrapnel injury to his pelvis. In May 2022, under orders from higher command, Artem and his comrades entered honorable captivity. On the night of July 29, 2022, Artem was seriously injured in the Olenivka massacre.
Following the explosion in the colony’s barracks, Anastasiia saw her husband several times in videos released by the russians. Since September 2022, she has had no news of Artem’s whereabouts or condition.
In May 2023, Anastasiia and the relatives of other Olenivka victims traveled to Geneva to meet with representatives of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross. It was only after this visit, 16 months into Artem’s captivity, that Russia officially confirmed his status as a prisoner of war.
Journalists can learn more and speak with Anastasiia in Kryvyi Rih, with online communication also available.
For reference: On the night of July 29, 2022, russia carried out a terrorist attack by detonating a barracks in the Olenivka penal colony, where Ukrainian prisoners of war were detained. At least 50 Azovstal defenders were killed, and over 100 were injured.
Svitlana Solonska worked as a kindergarten teacher in Zaporizhia region. Her husband, Vladyslav, was a teacher by education. At one time, he graduated from the Zaporizhia Police School. After the Revolution of Dignity, he joined the ranks of the Azov volunteer formation. Vladyslav was very happy when the unit later became part of the National Guard of Ukraine (now it is the Azov Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine). Having started as a driver, Vladyslav was promoted to the position of company commander, and then to the position of logistics officer.
On February 22, 2022, Vladyslav came home and told his wife that they were being sent to Mariupol. It was the last time Svitlana saw her husband.
Svitlana and her 13-year-old daughter were in Zaporizhia region when the full-scale invasion began. During the first days, their settlement was occupied by the russians. The woman saw enemy tanks driving through her village in the direction of Mariupol. Later, her husband called and said that Svitlana and her daughter needed to leave urgently, as the invaders would come to their home. On March 19, they were able to leave for Ukraine-controlled territory.
Vladyslav was at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol. Despite the blockade of the city and constant shelling, he was assigned the task of delivering products and supporting the rear. He delivered food and water to the field hospital under the shelling. A “Starlink” allowed him to keep in touch with his wife.
In May 2022, Vladyslav together with other defenders followed the order of the high command and surrendered. On the night of July 29, 2022, Vladyslav was injured during an explosion in the barracks in Olenivka, he did not receive proper medical care. There was no information about his condition for a long time. Later, Svitlana found out that her husband had died: they could find him only by DNA matching.
Journalists are welcome to learn more and talk with Svitlana in Kyiv.
For reference: On the night of July 29, 2022, the russian federation committed a terrorist attack, setting off an explosion in the barracks of the penal colony in Olenivka, which housed Ukrainian prisoners of war. At least 50 defenders of Azovstal were killed in the attack.
The BusDrive course is a free training program that empowers women to obtain Class D licenses for driving passenger buses. This initiative is part of the Reskilling Ukraine project.
Priority participants for the BusDrive course include women veterans, women from military families, IDPs, single mothers, and women over 50. Applicants must hold a Category B driver’s license and have at least three years of driving experience.
The course comprises theoretical and practical training, along with corresponding exams. Practical classes will commence next week in the Ternopil region.
The first class has already graduated, with eight women earning their Category D licenses. More than ten participants have joined the current course.
Journalists can, by prior arrangement, speak with participants and cover the practical classes in the Ternopil region. They can also interview the program organizers based in Sweden online.
For reference: Reskilling Ukraine is a project by the Swedish non-profit organization Beredskapslyftet, focusing on retraining and career support for women in Ukraine. Since its inception, over 100 women have been retrained as passenger bus or truck drivers.
Kateryna Lukiienko hails from the small village of Zalyman in the Kharkiv region, home to about 800 people before the full-scale invasion. When the all-out war erupted, Zalyman quickly fell under enemy control. Kateryna, along with her sister Lidiia and her children, was trapped in the village with no communication. Determined to document the atrocities, Kateryna began recording everything she witnessed. She took pictures, made videos, and kept detailed notes, compiling evidence of russian crimes in the region. During this time, she survived a russian shelling that left her with a traumatic brain injury. Her collected evidence, including testimonies, photos, and videos, has been submitted to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Following the village’s liberation, Kateryna and her family relocated to the Chernihiv region. She is currently awaiting state compensation for their destroyed home in Zaliman.
Kateryna Lukiienko remains in the Chernihiv region and is available for interviews, both online and in person.
Anna and Oleh’s journey began in 2020 when they met while Oleh was serving in the Azov Brigade. Their connection blossomed from phone calls and letters into a committed relationship. Their daughter was born just before the outbreak of the full-scale war.
Oleh and his twin brother Vitalii both served in the Azov Brigade, defending Mariupol from the war’s outset. In April 2022, while attempting to reach the Azovstal steel plant, their unit was ambushed. Vitaliy was killed, and Oleh, though wounded, managed to reach Azovstal before being captured a month later.
On the night of July 28-29, 2022, Oleh and 192 fellow prisoners were detained in Volnovakha Penal Colony No. 120 in Olenivka. Several explosions that night killed over 50 Azov Brigade members and injured more than a hundred. When russian media released lists of the wounded and deceased, Anna was horrified to see her husband’s name on both. Later, she discovered that Oleh had survived. Since then, Anna has tirelessly worked to secure his release, joining the Olenivka Community NGO to aid her efforts.
Anna Lobova is currently in Zhytomyr and is available for interviews, both online and in person.
A charity initiative called “Wind Power” has been launched in Kyiv, aimed at empowering women who are veterans, internally displaced persons (IDPs), or wives and widows of military personnel. The project focuses on teaching participants how to sail, fostering a supportive community, and helping them find new purposes in life. Eventually, the program aims to qualify them as yacht captains.
Currently, 16 women are enrolled in the 2.5-month course. The curriculum includes 10 practical training sessions on a sailing yacht with a professional instructor, 5 theoretical sailing classes, and participation in sailing races to solidify their skills.
The “Wind Power” project is led by Viktoriia Pototska, a military spouse and experienced yacht captain with a decade of sailing under her belt. She also founded the Family Yacht Club sailing school.
Journalists seeking coverage of the project in Kyiv can do so by prior arrangement.
For reference: The initiative is part of the You Are Goal program by the Projector Foundation, supported by USAID’s Ukraine Confidence Building Initiative (UCBI), and takes place at the Obolon Yacht Club in Kyiv.
Key partners include psychologist and yachtswoman Maryna Petrovych and financial literacy coach and yachtswoman Svitlana Telychenko.
Mariia Aleksieievych is 26 years old, for two of which she has been waiting for her husband Serhii Aleksieievych, a soldier from Azov Regiment. On May 16, 2022, he carried out the order and surrendered to the enemy.
Mariia and Serhii met before the full-scale invasion. Both studied in Khmelnytskyi, majoring in psychology. The couple lived for several years in a civil marriage, and officially married online in April 2022, when Serhii was already in surrounded Mariupol.
While Serhii was fighting in Mariupol, he tried to get in touch, asked his wife to hold on, work and study. The last time Mariia communicated with her husband was on May 13, 2022. The woman came across a video where she saw Serhii being captured, later she found confirmation that he was in Olenivka. After the explosion in the barracks of the Olenivka colony, the woman found her lover’s name on the list of the wounded.
Mariia says that Serhii Aleksieievych was officially recognized as a prisoner of war only on August 31, 2023. Every once in a while Mariia learns about her husband’s condition from former captives who return in prisoner exchanges.
Currently, Maria heads Olenivka Community NGO. She is also actively involved in public work to investigate the events in the Olenivka colony, bring the culprits to justice, and help Ukrainian prisoners of war and their families.
Mariia Aleksieievych is in Vinnytsia region and is ready to communicate with the media, both in person and online.
For reference: On the night of July 29, 2022, the russian federation committed a terrorist attack, setting off an explosion in the barracks of the penal colony in Olenivka, which housed Ukrainian prisoners of war. At least 50 defenders of Azovstal were killed in the blast.
