July 27, 2023
53,876 people evacuated from danger to date
302 people evacuated from danger this week
32 trips into the deoccupied and frontline territories
Although our volunteers do an incredible amount of work each week, the success of the volunteer movement depends on the success of the Ukrainian army. It is difficult to have a sense of progress and accomplishment, when the frontline is not moving. Our volunteers are familiar with this dynamic, but it is hard on them anyway and many of them shared with us how psychologically difficult it is to keep doing this work. Unfortunately, last week was more eventful than usual with massive strikes on Odesa damaging nearly 60 buildings, including cathedrals and architectural landmarks – UNESCO World Heritage sites – in the heart of this vibrant city. Fortunately both teams operating in Odesa were not harmed by these attacks.
The Russian rockets were not the only risk factor. Heavy rainfall overwhelmed Odesa’s struggling infrastructure. The warehouse of Alena’s team was flooded. They were a key team coordinating flood relief efforts in Kherson, but had to redirect their efforts to clean and salvage what they could from their own warehouse. Meanwhile, her Kherson volunteers continue to share pictures of their slow but steady progress in Kherson.
Stories
The fearless volunteers on both sides of the frontline continue to help Ukrainians evacuate from the occupied territory back to Ukraine. Last week these efforts resulted in evacuation of 129 people including 10 people with limited mobility. 420 people received aid packages.
Here is one of many seemingly ordinary stories that are part of this miraculous process. Olga:
“ We left because it became unsafe; Russians were moving a lot of armor through our village and into abandoned homes. My son is disabled, and grandma is 70. If she needs help, an ambulance won’t come, and we don’t have doctors – only Russian military medics. Curfew is in place so you can’t even ask the neighbors to drive you. Our friends would bring us medicine from Crimea, but at times we didn’t have them for two months. I was also missing my girls. In April 2022, volunteers helped me send them to my relatives. Time went by but things weren’t changing so we decided to go, though we were really afraid how my son would survive the trip. But thanks to the volunteers, especially […], who assisted us from beginning to end, we felt confident and comfortable. People met us at railroad stations, helped us get on and off the trains. Thank you to the volunteers who looked after a person with disabilities. If it wasn’t for the great organization we would not not dared to go. A huge thank you for your help.”
Our heartfelt congratulations to Sergey Tiora on his wedding! Volunteering is such a significant part of Sergey’s life that when the minister asked if anyone objects to this union during the ceremony, one of Sergey’s friends spoofed the couple by dressing up as a woman from Lyman and joking that she believed they were destined to be together from the time Sergey brought her a potbelly stove and included a chocolate bar in her humanitarian aid package. We wish the beautiful couple lots of love and, of course, a speedy victory and peaceful Ukraine.
Natasha’s team said goodbye to Roman who’s been called up to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and is being deployed as we write this letter. Roman is one of the key members of the team, who spent countless weekends loading and unloading trucks with Natasha. Roman came from Severodonetsk, a city that no longer exists on the other side of the frontline. He came to Kyiv at the end of March after his parents in Severodonetsk passed away and poured all his energy and rage into volunteering. Now he will fight the enemy as a soldier. We hope he stays safe and soon comes back to his new home.
In the meantime Natasha received a new batch of photos from the villages being demined in the Kherson region. Since we started this process the residential areas and infrastructure of 10 communities have been cleared of explosives and mines. Natasha is now working on supplying essential equipment to these teams to accelerate the process
Team summaries
Ihor Dobra Sprava (“Good Cause”)
173 people evacuated
15 trips taken last week to Sviatohirsk, Lyman, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, Kostyantynivka in the East, and Kherson and Nikopo in the South
450 kilograms of aid delivered to Nikopol
Oleksandr D’s Volunteer Networks
Pavlo V (Dnipro): delivered 1,200 kg of groceries to Pokrovsk and 300 kg to Slovyansk (both in Donetsk Region).
Vladyslav K (Mykolaiv): transported 14 tons of drinking water to Mykolaiv.
Sandra S (Odesa): fed more than 2,300 people, many of them evacuees from the flooding in Kherson. The kitchen has moved to the basement due to shelling.
Yuri S (Vinnytsia): distributed 700 kg of clothes and 400 kg of groceries to internally displaced people (IDPs) in Vinnytsia and 200 kg of grains to Bruslyniv (Vinnytsia Region).
Andriy P (Chernivtsi): delivered 185 bottles of mosquito repellent, and 4 refrigerators, 5 boxes of bedding, 30 bags of clothes, shoes and bed linen to Pavlivka (Ivano-Frankivsk Region).
Vilis N (Chernivtsi): delivered 20 tons of groceries to Kramatorsk (Donetsk Region).
Pavlo B (Zaporizhia): delivered 3 orthopedic beds to the Zaporizhia Vitacenter for seriously ill patients.
Oksana K (Lutsk): Brought 1.5 tons of dutch potatoes and rubber boots from Poland. Delivered 1.2 tons of groceries and hygiene products to Kramatorsk.
Oleksandr Z (Lutsk): held 3 art therapy sessions for children with disabilities, children of IDPs and children from large families. Held meetings with refreshments for 28 IDPs from Kherson. Helped 80 IDP children with glasses, food and social orientation activities.
NGO Angelia
Brought 2,000 kg of humanitarian aid from Adendorf (Germany) and 4,000 kg of aid from Bila Tserkva and Virnopillya to Kyiv for further distribution.
Kseniia’s Team - NGO Livyj Bereh
Roof rebuilding is in full swing, trying to complete as many as possible before the autumn rains. 8 more roofs restored in villages of Slatyne, Tsupivka, Prudianka.
Kherson team’s car broke down midweek so the going was slow. 50 packages were delivered to Kamyshany.
Darya from Kharkiv brought 100 aid packages to the frontline, the villages of Kucherivka, Kutkivka and Zapadne close to Kupyansk
Natasha - Vysnia Volunteer Center
We continued to support teams demining deoccupied villages in the Kherson region
Karina’s Team - We Save Dnipro
72 people continue to stay in Karina’s shelter
Delivered barrels, disinfectants, and tools to Kherson
10 tons of water delivered to Nikopol
57 packages of aid and medicine delivered to the elderly in Nikopol
As usual, members of Karina’s team headed to Odesa after the massive rocket attacks there to help clear debris and provide psychological support there
Alena - Virgo
42 homes in Kherson received help from the rescue and recovery team
One of the generators delivered last week is serving a long street of residents in Kherson, and 9 of those families also received blankets and groceries
Demining continues between the towns of Pasad-Pokrovsk, Soldatsky, and Pravine Over 50 pieces of ammunition were detonated and 30 acres of land de-mined
Inna’s Team
Flood Relief operations in Kherson:
Disinfected 5 spaces
Pumped water out of 7 spaces
Finished dehumidifying a condo highrise
4 spaces are being dehumidified
This rework required oil change for 7 generators and 64 refuelings
Delivered 230 packages in two trips, covering Davydov Brod and Berislav. Brought water and adult diapers as well
Brought aid and five generators to the deoccupied town of Virnopillia, where citizens are trying to restore basic life over the summer, often living in garages and sheds
300 water kegs delivered to Nikopol
23.4 tons of aid delivered to 8,150 people; plus 8,000 received bread
Pavel and Olena - Touch of Heart and Dawn of Hope
1,568 people received help in Mykolaiv office
Delivered water to the deoccupied, badly damaged villages of Kobzareve, Pavlomaryanivka
Delivered tools and hygienic products to Pavlomaryanivka
Andriy - BF Pomahaem
28 people continue to live in Andriy’s shelter
Delivered 12 cots to Kherson residents (purchase covered by SOS Children Places Ukraine, not UTC)
Marina – Good Give Ukraine
Marina's team received the biggest donation in their organization’s history: a full truckload of aid from Germany – chairs, tables, small furniture items, all of which will be given to internally displaced persons and used to remodel the Child Center where various activities for children who suffered from war take place.
120 elderly and people with disabilities in Pyatikhatky received food and hygiene
Dina - Vilni Liudy – Vilna Krayina
630 families received humanitarian aid packages. 49 of them were delivered by post to recipients based in smaller towns
Timur - Timur and Team
Delivered 350 hygiene sets to Kulynychi
Distributed 200 packets with food and hygiene in Saltivka, Kharkiv
Bogdan - Vse robymo sami
42 internally displaced families received aid this week
US Team
We would like to thank poet Dick Westheimer for his poignant poetry about Ukraine and generously donating the proceeds from his latest book A Sword in Both Hands. If you have any fundraising ideas and would like to help people in Ukraine by fundraising, please contact us at fundraisers@ukrainetrustchain.org.
How to Help
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