July 13, 2023
53,213 people evacuated from danger to date
354 people evacuated from danger this week
38 trips into the deoccupied and frontline territories
Among the many incredible achievements of volunteers we support, some shine particularly brightly. In the last five weeks UTC funding helped 890 people escape from Russia-controlled territories. For security reasons we asked only for very limited visibility into these processes inside Russia, but these routes are incredibly complex and require constant coordination among fearless volunteers. The people rescued are mostly elderly, 30% of them are 80 and older. They are village residents who only agree to this harrowing journey after losing everything they have and wishing to spend the rest of their lives in Ukraine — not under Russian occupation. About 20 of the evacuees couldn’t walk, and yet, after many days on the road, they arrived safely in Ukraine, or reached their relatives in the EU. Our trusted volunteers made sure every evacuated Ukrainian is with their families, or staying in shelters and hospitals in Western Ukraine.
Stories
Update on Flood Relief
Many of our teams continue to be deeply involved in flood relief operations. Inna has two volunteers assisting groups of Kherson residents working on their own apartment buildings. Their work is hard and full of chaos. They move equipment from location to location, train people and replace failing parts. Last week, a couple of generators broke down, but Inna’s team brought in the replacements. Meanwhile, Kherson continues to suffer from daily shellings. Last week, a shockwave shattered the windows in the building where our volunteers were working. Yet these terrorist strikes stop neither the residents determined to hang on to their homes nor the volunteers in their tireless work. Last week, this group 5 buildings were dehumidified and 7 - fully disinfected.
Each home takes a minimum of 3 days to clean. The team has to empty it entirely, then clean the floor, walls, and ceiling and remove mold. After this, the home will be ready to be remodeled: painted and patched up. The progress is slow but we have more teams helping the elderly to clean and repair their homes. Team supported by Alena cleaned out a church last week and was able to clean 4 homes this week.
Anna, whom we support through Karina, helps clear debris in rural areas. The video above shows an elderly man in his house deemed uninhabitable by the government. The house is covered in dirt and mold. Nothing inside is salvageable. Yet, the resident showed Anna how he’d already cleared a path through one room and was working on the kitchen. Those who refuse to leave are often elderly. They sift through what’s left of their belongings, looking for photographs and other meaningful objects. The air is difficult to breathe and made Anna ill after just a couple hours.
Sergey Tiora’s Trip to Lyman
As Sergey and other volunteers approached Lyman, they saw up close Russian shells hitting the town. A man they met said he saw 11 people lying motionless on the ground. Later that night this bloody attack was on the news, in line with other horrifying but familiar headlines about Ukraine.
The team drove through the town and kept going. They did not expect to get too close to the front. But the local alderman probably didn’t want to deliver the aid himself, and tricked our team into driving with the aid to the next village. What was supposed to be a 1 mile drive turned to be a 4 mile drive with every mile taking them closer to the line of battle.
The village they reached last had only 17 people left alive, all elderly and with disabilities. They have not had electricity since the start of the war. “The people were almost feral,” Sergey said, “They were filthy. They don’t believe anything anymore.” The volunteers hid their van in the bushes and distributed packages one by one hiding from enemy drones, since mortar fire becomes a real danger this close to the enemy.
The Ukraine TrustChain team would like to express our heartfelt condolences to Sergey on the loss of his mother, just days after this mission. She was a strong and kind woman, and we know she donated most of her meager pension each month, asking Sergey to buy treats for the troops, saying, “Our boys need some sweets to keep up their spirits.”
Delivering Garden Tools in Ukraine’s Deep South
Last week Pavel’s team delivered garden tools to the Village of Novohryhorivka near Kherson. The village is in a remote location and hard to access due to mines and destroyed roads. It is difficult to prioritize frequent deliveries of aid there. Locals rely mostly on their own gardens and fields to provide sustenance, which is why garden tools, shovels, and rakes are in short supply and are the key to people’s survival.
When volunteers arrive in Novohryhorivka, the village alderman rings the bell like in the old times, announcing the arrival of help and elderly village residents begin to gather in the village center. Sourcing and delivering garden tools is one of the many parts of our larger agrarian project that has helped more than 20,000 families in Ukraine this year.
Team summaries
Ihor Dobra Sprava (“Good Cause”)
16 trips and 179 people evacuated from Lyman, Slov’yansk, Kramatorsk, Kostyantynivka, and Toretsk
Oleksandr D’s Volunteer Networks
Vladyslav K (Mykolaiv): transported 35 tons of drinking water to Mykolaiv; delivered two 3-ton water barrels to two settlements in the Kherson Region, as well as water to fill the barrels, clothes, shoes, bed linen, blankets and bottled water
Sandra S (Odesa): kitchen fed more than 2,200 people, most of them evacuees from the flooding in Kherson. This week the evacuees included 120 children.
Yury S (Vinnitsia): delivered 1 ton of cereal grains and clothes to Vapnyarka (Vinnitsia Region)
Oksana K (Lutsk): brought 400 kg of food products to Dnipro for further distribution by Inna’s team
Oleksandr Z (Lutsk): held 3 art therapy sessions for children with disabilities, children of internally displaced people (IDPs), children from large families, and children from military families
NGO Angelia
Report for period 07/04/23-07/11/23.
Picked up an X-ray machine and wheelchairs from Berdychiv
Delivered 5,000 kg humanitarian aid and medical supplies to Mykolaiv and the Mykolaiv Region, including Snihurivka, Shyroke and Partizanske
Kseniia’s Team - NGO Livyj Bereh
Olha and Svitlana distributed aid to 177 families in Kherson
110 families helped in Chaykine, Kherson region
3 more roofs restored last week in Kharkiv region
Natasha - Vysnia Volunteer Center
Natalia is planning her trip to the East; meanwhile, she continued support of demining efforts in Kherson where our group has reported 10 villages demined to date.
Karina’s Team - We Save Dnipro
51 people in the shelter, including families of wounded soldiers who are undergoing treatment in Dnipro hospital
The team completed shelter renovations and pest control
Independent Nation delivered to Kherson 2 generators, pet food to a shelter, blankets, shovels, cleaning supplies, and medicine
108 families in Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Krivy Rig received humanitarian aid
The team traveled to Kramatorsk delivering 50 packages of aid and medicine to a hospital there
Alena - Virgo
Evacuated 46 people from Kherson, 16 of them from the left bank
Inna’s Team
12 homes dried and disinfected in Kherson
Despite ruthless artillery fire, volunteers made two trips to Berislav, Davydiv Brod and Pidhidne helping 210 people with food, water, gas tanks and basic hygienic products.
Inna’s Donetsk region teams continued distributions in Druzhkovka, Kramatorks, Slovyansk and Konstantynivka distributing household chemicals and food.
Through Inna we support distributions in the occupied territories. Last week we helped 350 people with basic food packages.
Delivered hospital beds, wheelchairs, and drinking water to Nikopol hospital. Nikopol continues to suffer from water shortages in the aftermath of Kakhovka floods.
Overall, delivered aid packages to 8,220 people
Delivered bread to 11,000 people
Delivered 14,000 hygienic kits and 23.4 tons of food
Tetiana’s Team - Dopomoha Poruch
Distributed 265 aid packages in Smila, Cherkassky region
Pavel and Olena - Touch of Heart and Dawn of Hope
1,457 refugee families received aid in Mykolayiv.
490 children are supported by Pavel’s Mykolayiv Office. One day a week now is fully dedicated to children's activities.
Garden tools delivered to Novohryhorivka, Shevhenkove, Luch; 184 families helped on these missions
The team continues to deliver water to villages that lost water supply after the Kakhovka Dam floods.
Andriy - BF Pomahaem
31 people are staying in Andriy’s shelter
Started delivering water to Marhanets. Deliveries of 10 tons each will happen twice a week, prioritizing the needs of foster families and larger families with kids.
Marina – Good Give Ukraine
Added location in Vilnohirsk
Distributed aid packages to 300 families
Dina - Vilni Liudy – Vilna Krayina
388 families received humanitarian aid at regular distribution centers
100 packages mailed to families in small towns
We continue supporting the art therapy club for children in Kremenchuk.
Sergey T traveled to Lyman area delivering 100 packages of food and hygiene products (see story above)
Bogdan - Vse robymo sami
Bogdan’s organization “We do everything ourselves” celebrated its 20th anniversary this week. Over the years of its activity, it has managed to organize 2,860 charitable, cultural, and educational events. They have aided 30,000 families and provided support to schools, hospitals, military institutions, and other organizations.
42 displaced families received food and hygiene kits
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