April 25, 2024
61,004 people evacuated from danger to date
157 people evacuated from danger this week
42 trips into the deoccupied and frontline territories this week
Despite continued nightly bombings in Ukraine and harrowing stories streaming from frontline areas, this week our team is hopeful. We are proud that the US Congress and Senate passed Ukraine aid and were happy to get countless misplaced thank yous from our volunteers. We are very grateful to everyone who worked towards this milestone: the many people in our community who met with and reached out to their representatives in Congress and supported this bill. We hope that this aid and its military component will help Ukraine to end Russia’s terrorism and destruction, reducing the number of refugees and civilians requiring urgent help from Ukrainian volunteers.
Stories
Tetiana’s Trip Sadove, on Kherson Frontline
Tetiana’s team Dopomoha Poruch 2022 in Smila shared this impression with us after her team’s trip to deliver aid to Sadove in the Kherson region.
"The war is not over. The village is still recovering from the occupation and flooding after the Kakhovka Dam collapse… As the water receded, many old houses were washed away like cardboard, making their residents homeless.”
“There has been no electricity since the first days of the war, as the occupiers destroyed the power station. There is no possibility to restore it, as the front line is on the other side of the Dnipro River from the village. Everything that can be shot at is shot at. Children see enemy drones more often than cartoons. A resident of the village said that today she was accompanied from work back home by Russian drones.”
“While we talked with the residents and unloaded aid, we noticed a drone and then heard explosions nearby. We had to stop providing assistance and leave the area for the safety of the population. Afterward people thanked us tearfully for helping them and for remembering that Kherson is Ukraine. Together towards victory! Glory to Ukraine!!”
Help in Occupied Areas
400 aid packages were distributed in 5 towns under Russian occupation. 9 people were evacuated from the Russian-occupied left bank.
Nataliya’s Trip to Lyman
For the second time in two weeks Natalia returned to the Lyman region right on the eastern frontline.
Natalia came with 300 large packages. As she started distributing aid in Yampil the shelling began somewhere nearby. Natalia moved to another street but the shelling only seemed to get closer. When Natalia decided to go to the city hall and leave the packages there for the administration to distribute, the shelling intensified. At this point Natalia and her driver had to abort the mission and flee.
Rather than immediately returning home though, Natalia went to Zakytne village to finish the distribution there. She left the rest of the packages in Lyman. On Monday, local police finished distribution on an armored vehicle. Unfortunately, this trip fits into the pattern we’ve been observing, where distributions in the east seem to be getting riskier week after week as Russians press their attack on Ukraine.
Kherson Aid
After Oleksandr Ushkan and his Kherson branch of Krok z Nadiyeyu helped a kindergarten there to dry the walls and remove mold, multiple schools, preschools, and other educational facilities contacted the team for help. These buildings currently function as bomb shelters and humanitarian hubs. People come here to eat, charge their phones, or hide during bombings. Last week Oleksandr’s team cleaned another school building in Kherson. Here is what they said: “We hope that children will return to this building and will be comfortable here. That’s one of the reasons we do all this work. We hope that one day we'll look back and remember how, thanks to our efforts, people were able to return to this building.”
Seedlings are almost ready for distribution
Team Summaries
Alina’s Team – Dobra Sprava (“Good Cause”)
15 trips with 148 people evacuated to safety from Selydove, Lyman, Mykolaiv, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, Kostyantynivka, Pokrovsk, Myrnohrad, and Kherson.
Inna’s Team – Krok z Nadiyeyu (“Step with Hope”)
9150 people received 22 tons of aid; 9500 people received bread.
Completed seed distributions in Balakliya, Dobropillya, and Chkalove.
Work in Kherson:
Exterminations in 7 buildings, disinfections in 3 buildings.
Desinfections performed in 4 buildings including a humanitarian hub.
Exterminated rats in 18 buildings.
Pumped water out from 1 basement space, dehumidified 1 space.
Closed up blown out windows in a building.
Boarded up 2 homes in Myrnohrad (Donbas) after attacks.
Delivered aid to Kramatorsk, Kostyantynivka, Druzhkivka, Nikopol, and Beryslav.
Provided emergency relief in Synelnykove after a massive rocket attack on the town that damaged and destroyed 60 homes there.
Oleksandr D’s Volunteer Networks
Oleksandr S (Boyarka): delivered 60 kg of baby food to the specialized educational center for children in Chernihiv and 2.5 tons of potatoes from a farmer to humanitarian centers in Konotop (Sumy Region), Chernihiv, Bila Tserkva (Kyiv Region) and Kyiv. Handed over a dishwasher to the Chernihiv educational and rehabilitation center.
Vladyslav K (Mykolaiv): delivered 35 tons of drinking water to Mykolaiv and 7 tons to Kherson.
Sandra S (Odesa): kitchen fed more than 2,000 people.
Vitaliy Z (Kharkiv): delivered 6.5 tons of humanitarian packages, medicines, clothes, food, animal food, gel, drinking water, pastries and literature to three locations in the near-front Donetsk Region: 2.5 tons to Zalizne, 2 tons to the “Southern Mine” area of Toretsk and 2 tons to Ocheretyne.
Oksana K (Lutsk): loaded up 340 kg of aid in Warsaw.
Oleksandr Z (Lutsk): held 3 art therapy sessions for 39 internally displaced (IDP) children, children with disabilities, children from large families and from military families. An additional 112 children from large families received food, and attended children’s events and developmental classes with a psychologist.
Sandra S kitchen in Odesa
Kseniia’s Team - NGO Livyj Bereh (“Left Bank”)
Kharkiv-based Darya delivered 146 packages to the frontline village of Blyznyuky.
Delivered generator to support 18 people in Slobozhanske.
2 roofs installed in Slatyne near Kharkiv.
Thanks to Svitlana, 128 people received aid in Pryozerne and Kherson.
Karina’s Team - We Save Dnipro
57 people in the shelter.
Tetiana’s Team - Dopomoha Poruch (“Help is Near”)
Distributed 300 aid packages in the frontline village of Kostyantynivka, Donetsk region.
Timur’s Team – Timur and Team
The Kharkiv region continues to be pounded by Russian missiles. Meanwhile the team is looking for a 4x4 vehicle as the roads are becoming impassable on their delivery routes.
Delivered aid packages to 180 people in Slavyansk.
Distributed aid to 200 people in Saltivka, Kharkiv.
Special deliveries to 20 families with babies and 10 disabled elderly.
Pavel and Olena’s Teams - (“Touch of Heart” and “Dawn of Hope”)
Mykolaiv office helped 1835 people.
Delivered aid to Novohryhorivka (72 families), Lyubomyrivka (100 families), and Prybuzke (270 families).
Organized a children's holiday in Mykolaiv “with popcorn and cotton candy, next to a bomb shelter to keep kids safe.”
Kirill, Marina, Andriy - BF Pomahaem (“We Help”)
780 packages delivered over 3 trips in Kherson. These aid deliveries were sponsored by Danida (Danish International Development Agency).
2 trips to Izyum and Kupiansk, vetting 351 people for GFFO aid.
Natalia’s Team - Vyshnia Volunteer Center
302 packages were delivered to Yampil and Zakitne on the eastern frontline.
200 packages and 60 gifts for children delivered to Khreshchenivka and Petrove in Kherson region.
Marina’s Team – Give Good Ukraine
Sent 48 packages for displaced people to different parts of Ukraine.
Distributed 102 food and hygiene kits in Piatyhatky.
Hosted the monthly "Game for Unity" psychological relief event for internally displaced people. The event is gaining more popularity with each occurrence. Participants shared their experiences, saying they “had a chance to take a break from pressing problems." They said "No matter how strong we are, support still increases our strength; it's like a breath of fresh air when things get tough." And "You believe that life goes on."
Dina’s Team - Vilni Liudy – Vilna Krayina (“Free People - Free Country”)
Distributed 380 packages and mailed 100 more.
Bogdan’s Team - Vse robymo sami (“We do everything ourselves”)
Aid was provided to 43 families in Zhytomyr.
Air conditioners were installed in the Inclusive Children's Center "House of Joy."
Kids participated in psychological game therapy, art classes, and culinary classes.
Anastasia’s Team - LoveUA
405 packages with food and 405 packages with hygiene items delivered to 2 towns near Kostyantynivka in Donbas.
How to Help
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