Themes by tag: women

Larysa Hurova, owner of the OgOgO Kozi-Kozi home farm in the Volnovakha district of Donetsk region, is racing against time to secure a haven for her livestock. When russia launched its all-out invasion, Hurova managed the farm with four employees and around a hundred goats.

The relentless shelling and the farm’s proximity to the front line have made operations increasingly untenable. Nearby villages have been reduced to ruins, and the farm has been without electricity since December 2024. As conditions continue to deteriorate, Hurova has begun searching for a safer location to preserve her livestock and rebuild her farm’s operations.

The OgOgO Kozi-Kozi home farm is now urgently seeking a secure place to resume its work.

Larysa Hurova is available for online discussions by appointment.

• women

Viktoriia Didovets, a charge nurse in the Intensive and Efferent Therapy Department for Acute Intoxication at the National Children’s Hospital Okhmatdyt, was injured during a missile strike on the hospital on July 8, 2024. As the attack unfolded, she was evacuating children on dialysis to a shelter when a missile struck the building.

By the time Viktoriia was rushed to the operating room, her pulse was barely detectable. She was diagnosed with a fractured pelvis, an open hip fracture, a ruptured liver, and injuries to her face and ear. For more than eight months, she has been undergoing treatment, determined to regain a full life.

By prior arrangement, Viktoriia is available for interviews in Kyiv or online.

Background: On July 8, 2024, a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile struck Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital. At the time of the attack, 627 children were inside.

The strike killed two people—a doctor and a patient’s relative—while injuring 35 others, including nine children. On July 10, a boy who had been in critical condition in intensive care at the time of the attack succumbed to his injuries in a Kyiv hospital.

• casualties
• children
• doctors
• russian crimes
• women
• Kyiv

Halyna Hrytseniak, a medical doctor and Marine Corps veteran, spent 1 year, 7 months, and 12 days in captivity following the defense of Mariupol. Today, she volunteers with the Stalevi charitable organization and is an active member of the Stalevi veterans’ movement.

Her husband, Mykola Hrytseniak, is also a soldier—a Marine who fought in the defense of Mariupol. He endured four months in captivity before returning to military service as an instructor at the Marine Training Center.

Halyna recalls receiving her first marriage proposal on April 1, 2022, in a bunker at the Ilyich plant, where the hospital was located. Mykola, wounded with a gunshot to his leg, was lying there when he asked her to marry him.

More details on Halyna’s story are available here. 

Journalists can arrange an online interview with her by prior agreement.

• military
• prisoners
• women

On March 25, Kyiv will host the forum “Gender Equality in Defenсe – On the Way to Justice and Human Dignity”. The forum aims to strengthen equality and justice in the Security and Defence sector, improve military service conditions, and analyze barriers to implementing inclusive and gender equality policies. 

Additionally, it seeks to lay the foundation for an effective strategy that integrates a human-centred, gender-sensitive, and inclusive approach into the defence system at all levels. The event is part of the UK Special Defence Advisor’s Program.

Featured speakers include

• Kyle Sargon, Deputy National Security Adviser of the United Kingdom
• Olha Reshetylova (Kobylynska), Presidential Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of Servicemen and their Families
• Colonel Petro Fivkin, Head of the Central Department for the Protection of the Rights of Military Personnel
• Members of the Ukrainian Parliament, representatives of civil society and active servicemen (both women and men)

The Forum program includes panel discussions on the following topics:

• Institutionalizing gender equality in the Security and Defense sector;
• Protecting the rights of service members and combating gender-based violence;
• Material support in the Armed Forces of Ukraine;
• Inclusion and diversity in the Security and Defense sector.

Kateryna Pryimak, head of the VETERANKA movement, will moderate the panel “Protecting the rights of service members and combating gender-based violence”.

Accreditation is required to participate in the event.

Note: The Forum is organized with the support of the following partners: British Embassy in Ukraine, Special Defense Advisor Program, VETERANKA Movement, StateWatch, and UK International Development.

• military
• women
• Kyiv

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Olha Tolsta and her mother have been caring for cats abandoned by their owners in the northern Saltivka district of Kharkiv. To pay for the care of such a large number of animals, Olha began making traditional Ukrainian jewelry. Over the past three years, she has earned and spent more than 250,000 hryvnia on the animals.

In addition to feeding the cats, Olha and her mother try to take care of their health and find them new homes. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, they have managed to sterilize 30 cats and rehome another 30.

You can talk to Olha Tolsta either online or in person by prior arrangement.

• animals
• culture
• volunteers
• women
• Kharkiv

Dr. Serhii Baksheiev is a gynecologist, obstetrician, reproductive specialist, general practitioner, and a medical volunteer with a PhD in medicine. Since the early days of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he has been treating women and assisting with deliveries, all while under fire.

In late 2022, Baksheiev launched his own initiative, which he named the ‘Feminine Shuttle’. This specialized mobile unit is designed for gynecological exams in de-occupied and frontline regions. The vehicle is outfitted with a gynecological chair and all the necessary equipment for thorough examinations.

In a challenging turn of events, Baksheiev was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He underwent surgery and chemotherapy in September 2024. Despite his health battle, he has continued his mission to help those in need. Even while recovering from surgery, he joined FRIDA Ukraine’s volunteer medics on a mission to the Sumy region.

Journalists wishing to speak with Dr. Baksheiev can arrange interviews with him either in Kyiv or during his field missions.

For reference: FRIDA Ukraine is a Ukrainian-Israeli medical volunteer mission focused on providing high-quality care to war-affected civilians.

• casualties
• doctors
• volunteers
• women
• Kyiv

Before the full-scale invasion, Maryna Sadykova, the founder of the “Repower” charitable foundation, worked in event management. After 24 February, she and her team shifted their focus to supporting Ukrainian soldiers. However, the intense volunteer work took a toll on her mental health, leading to burnout and anxiety. In search of recovery, she traveled to the Carpathian Mountains, an experience that inspired her to create a psychological support program. Initially, the project aimed to help fellow military volunteers, but due to limited funding, the team decided to focus on combat medics — those on the front lines saving soldiers’ lives.

This led to the creation of the “Repower” project in Kyiv, which provides mental health recovery programs for Ukrainian combat medics. The organization has developed a sustainable psychological rehabilitation program — a 10-day retreat in Sweden, Denmark and Spain. Ukrainian psychologists accompany the medics on each trip. The program includes therapeutic exercises, individual counseling, group sessions, art therapy and music therapy. To date, “Repower” has organized 12 trips for 847 participants.

Following the retreat, journalists will have the opportunity to interview Maryna Sadykova and program participants, either online or in person, by prior arrangement.

• doctors
• psychological support
• volunteers
• women

“Auto Mechanic” is a free training course for women within the OnTrack program of the Reskilling Ukraine project.

The course is designed to train future specialists in vehicle maintenance and repair. The curriculum includes basic knowledge about the structure, working principles and technical characteristics of modern automobiles.

The course will begin in Kyiv on April 7, with 15 women participating.

Background: Reskilling Ukraine is a project of the Swedish non-profit organization Beredskapslyftet, implemented in Ukraine. It focuses on free training programs for women and veterans to help them start careers in new fields.

• women
• Kyiv

For more than 32 years, Valentyna Hantseva has worked at the library in the village of Soldatske, Sumy Oblast. Just months before russia’s full-scale invasion, the library underwent a modern renovation and received new equipment. But when a russian airstrike hit the village center during the occupation, the library building was left in ruins. Only the roof and walls remained intact, while the blast wave devastated the interior.

Despite the occupation and the constant threat of russian aircraft overhead, Valentyna and her husband began salvaging books, hiding them in grain sacks to keep them safe. In total, she managed to rescue more than 1,000 volumes.

In April 2022, Ukrainian forces liberated the village. With support from a benefactor in Germany, the library was restored, and by the fall of 2022, Valentyna was able to reopen its doors to readers.

For reference: By April 11, 2022, then-Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi announced that Ukraine had fully regained control of its state border in the Sumy region.

• culture
• occupation
• reconstruction
• russian crimes
• women
• Sumy

Olena Herhel’s beloved Vasyl was Belarusian. Back home, he fought against the regime of self-proclaimed President Aleksandr Lukashenko—a struggle that led to his imprisonment. In 2015, he joined Ukraine’s fight, believing that by defending Ukraine, he was also taking a step toward freeing his own country.

In the summer of 2022, Olena received word that Vasyl was missing. But she says she knows for certain that he is dead—his comrades witnessed his death in battle. Later, she found footage on an enemy propaganda channel that showed Vasyl’s body, along with the chevron and belt she had given him.

Now raising three children alone, Olena made the decision to mobilize when her eldest son came of age. She was offered a role in the patronage service of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade Kholodnyi Yar, where she now leads efforts to locate missing soldiers. Having lived through the anguish of uncertainty, she says she deeply understands what these families endure—and she is committed to doing everything she can to support those who receive the dreaded news that a loved one is missing.

Olena Herhel is available for interviews both online and in person by appointment.

• military
• women