This week has been busy. But it was not the news of the offensive in the Kharkiv region, or the sirens that were heard everywhere far too often and for a long time, or even the news from the Donetsk region about massive shelling of the road that we used take to reach remote villages with our humanitarian help… This week has been full of people’s gratitude, which gives us the desire and inspiration to go on.
DOBROPILLIA thanks for the seedlings
“Please accept our deepest thanks from the residents of Mykolaivka for the project of distributing seeds and seedlings to the people of our town. The seeds and planting material provided to us are of very high quality. They have 100% germination rate and are taking root well. In these difficult, wartime period of our lives, this is the best support for us. We are happy that we are not forgotten and that your organization is taking care of us. Thank you very much!”
LUKASHIVKA, LOZOVA DISTRICT
“Thank you for the seedlings. I am Sergey, an IDP from the city of Izium, Kharkiv region. I live with my mother, and I am very grateful for the planting material.”
“My name is Halyna, I am an IDP from Kramatorsk. I am very grateful for the seedlings that help me in this burdensome times. Now I know I will be able to survive.”
NOVOMOSKOVSK
“Thank you very much for the opportunity to receive seedlings from the sponsors and the charity foundation. I am an IDP from Donetsk region and it is so nice of you to give us hope for the future.”
“I have moved from the Luhansk region and I am living now in Novomoskovsk with my family. I am very obliged for the assistance provided, as for me and my family it is a significant help.”
HRAKOVE VILLAGE, CHKALOVSKE COMMUNITY
“My name is Andrii, I am 61 years old. When the war started, I was forced to seek refuge for my family in a safer place.
I have come with my family from the village of Osypenko, Berdiansk district. The enemy captured our village in the first days of the war. To save our lives, we all ran to the evacuation buses, though they were already full of people. Eventually, we all managed to squeeze in and have enough room for everyone. God saved us.
We settled in the Chkalovske community in the village of Hrakove and were helped to rent a small house with a garden. In the spring, they also helped us with seedlings. Thanks a million for your timely help. We hope for a good harvest.”
“My name is Olga, I am 50 years old. This is my second displacement since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. The first time I had to leave my home was in 2014, as my family used to live in Luhansk then.
In the spring of 2014, the occupiers came to our city: Russian tanks appeared on the streets, and “titushky” seized power. At first, we tried to counteract by organizing pro-Ukrainian rallies, but we saw that it was useless. Then we realized we had nothing to do there… The decision to leave was not an easy one, but… that’s how we ended up in the Kharkiv region, and later on, in the Chkalovske community. A new chapter of our life began with difficulties. In a new community, we were acquiring a new profession and setting up a home. But it has been interesting!
We even got to take a small piece of land… So, we did settle in at last. We started to cultivate the garden. We are very grateful to the foundation for the planting material! It is a wonderful way to help that has significantly saved our family budget because there are a lot of expenses. We are grateful for such help in the times of trouble for our country and the IDPs.”
The frontline territories of the Kherson region, namely the village of Novyi Beryslav, thank the ICF Step with Hope and the Ukrainian TrustChain for the seedlings and the seed kits.
Pavlohrad is grateful for the support
“My name is Olga. Me, my husband and our four children came here from Kostiantynivka. We are renting a house, which is a big expense, so your help with the seedlings is especially valuable for us. Thank you very much for your concern.”
“My name is Sergey Pavlovich, I am 70 years old. We live together with my wife, just the two of us. I’ve had two strokes, I can’t walk well, but I can still do a lot around the house. For us, these seedlings are a gift from above, as our pensions are small, and the garden feeds us almost fully. Thank you very much.”
“I am an IDP from Avdiivka. My name is Liudmyla Stepanivna. The three of us came from Avdiivka: me, my daughter-in-law, and my granddaughter. There is nothing left waiting for us at home, everything is destroyed. It is hard to express how pleased and appreciative of your care we are! Thank you so very, very much for the seedlings and for everything you do for us.”
Nova Hnylytsia village, CHKALOVSKE COMMUNITY
“I, Stepanko Iryna Ivanivna, am 74 years old. I am an IDP and a pensioner. When the war started, I was forced to leave the city of Kharkiv, as a rocket exploded near our house and the windows flew out of the walls. I had to go to my relatives in the village of Znamianka. I have been living in this village for around two years now, living on a pension and payments for the IDPs. Last year and this year, the ICF Step with Hope gave us some planting material, like tomatoes, cabbage, and peppers. Everything we need for life. We got everything for free. Million thanks to the organizers and all the people who grew these seedlings. May the Lord bless you for your good deeds! I wish you all great health, the development of your Foundation, and a soon victory!”
“I, Natalia Lushchenko, am 86 years old. I currently live with my son who takes care of me. It is such a difficult time! It is very hard for everyone to survive. There is not enough money for medicines and food. I receive a pension, we plant a vegetable garden with my son and keep a cow. This year we received free seedlings. We will plant them so that we have something to eat in the winter. I am grateful to all the volunteers of the ICF Step with Hope, to everyone who was involved in growing these seedlings, and to everyone who paid for them! It is a great help in our time. I wish the Foundation prosperity and a peaceful sky!”
As you have already understood, the Hope Seedling Distribution Project by the ICF Step with Hope with the support of Ukraine TrustChain is well underway. Last week, we were able to fully provide the Donetsk region with planting material, namely the settlements of Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, Kostiantynivka, and Sloviansk. The seedlings were also delivered to some parts of Kharkiv and Dnipro regions.
Here’s a true story from farmers in the Kharkiv region. As spring was early this year, many farmers hastily planted their gardens very early. Yet, in early May, there was a sudden frost in the areas of the Kharkiv region where the gardens had already been planted. This resulted in the death of the plants that had sprouted, as well as the dying of fruit ovaries in orchards and vineyards.
Many people got deeply upset. And when our seedlings arrived after that, it was like a way out of a dead end for some families!
After that, we received calls from the administrations of these districts to be sincerely thanked for the help. We were able to provide timely assistance to 4,600 families.
Kherson out of power
Two districts in the city are without electricity again, so generators for pumping water have to be refueled more often. But no one has canceled the oil change.
The fight against rodents continues as well. Since no one in this region plants fields and rodents have nothing to eat, they get into people’s homes. This week we had a mega job to do: 10 entrances/staircases in apartment buildings. We have not seen such a great lot of mice ever before.
Larysa Andriivna lives on the central street of Kherson. She contacted us because of a rodent problem. Mice had infested the entire house where she lived with five other people who stayed there. When our Step with Hope Team arrived at the house, we discovered that there were surely lots of mice, most of them on the fourth floor. Many of the apartments had no windows left. Their holes were blocked with OSB boards. The 3 mm thick iron door, stitched through, began to paint a picture in my head of what could have happened there.
After finishing our work, we started talking to the woman as usual, trying to understand what other help the people living at the spot might need. What I heard was hard to even grasp. There are only five people left in the entire apartment block. For a long time, they have been trying to deal with the mice and have failed. The situation is further complicated by the fact that all the people here are elderly. The last young ones who used to live in this house were killed by a mine that landed right in the yard, as evidenced by the pierced walls.
The woman who ordered our services has survived the occupation, intimidation from the Russians, and attempts to take her out of the city by force, she wants to live in her home and believes that it is God who has kept her alive until this day. She also says that even if her time comes, she wants it to be in her hometown. She was crying telling us all this story. We talked to her for a long time and made it clear that she was not alone and that she could count on us at any need. “It’s a great blessing to know that someone cares for me! What a great job you are doing!” she told us.
Donetsk region: Kostiantynivka, Druzhkivka, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk
Although the situation around these towns is very tense, people are returning to their homes as they no longer have the resources to live in rented accommodation. This week we have distributed 100 loaves of bread, several dozen pairs of eyeglasses and diapers for bedridden adults. The total weight of the humanitarian aid this time was about 1 ton. The people are very grateful, but it is becoming more and more difficult for us to reach them.
Gratitudes from Kharkiv region
“I am Lidia Kharchenko, 82 years old. I live alone in Znamianka, and I sincerely thank you for your help with bread! My entire pension is spent on medicines. Sometimes it is not enough to buy bread, and here comes such a great donation! I thank God and I thank you, everyone involved in this project! Peace be with you!”
“We would like to express our gratitude from the family of Zadorozhna Iryna Vasylivna and Viktor Volodymyrovich, two retired residents of the Merefa community. This help is an amazingly appropriate and tangible addition to the pension, which is extremely small. We are very grateful to everyone taking part in this project!”
As you may know, our trips to Kharkiv districts almost always pass through the following settlements: the city of Kharkiv and the villages of Mala Danylivka, Dergachi, Merefa, Znamianka, Bohodukhiv and Novostepanivka.
A lot of people received bread with the support of Ukraine TrustChain. We also organized a movie night for the youth. In the afternoon, they had a good time playing sports. In addition, seedlings were distributed to those who needed help. And for children, we organized a master class, “A Cake for Your Mom”. We also brought clothes for one of the volunteer centers that weaves camouflage nets.
Acknowledgments from Dnipropetrovsk region
Nikopol
The volunteers in Nikopol also received words of gratitude, this time from the organization of mothers of disabled children in Nikopol, called “To Live for Real”. This week, 40 children with disabilities received help from the ICF Step with Hope. The parents of the disabled children are sincerely thankful for the help. The war has dragged on while the support from all sides is decreasing. Our special mothers, who are raising children with disabilities, received great help that is food packages from the ICF Step with Hope.
Another significant event for the Nikopol region was the distribution of drinking water in the village of Zakamianka, Nikopol district. We distributed 120 bottles of drinking water, 50 food packages, 20 packages of sweets, and 7 boxes of rice.
Pavlohrad
This week, humanitarian aid that included household chemicals, canned food, bread, clothes, and eyeglasses was distributed in the Pavlohrad region.
We received words of thanks from Tamila and George from Kramatorsk:
“We are very grateful for your care and much-needed help. At such a time, it’s nice to have someone take care of you.”
Kryvyi Rih
There have been various trips in this region lately. The most memorable was from the city of Kryvyi Rih to Lozuvatka, then to Sofiivka and Kherson.
We organized the distribution of food packages and bread, psychological training for IDPs and victims of war losses, as well as rehabilitation activities for war victims.
The total weight of the humanitarian aid amounted to about 2500 kg. As always, there were a lot of thanks:
“My name is Olesya, 28 years old. I am raising a one-year-old son, my husband is at war at the moment. Unfortunately, I do not have a job as I stay at home with my son. Sometimes my parents and my husband’s parents help me. My child has certain health issues, so a lot of money goes to his treatment. I am very grateful for the help.”
Kamianske
It’s awesome when the work is in full swing and the volunteers know that they will never be idle. That’s what they say at the Kamianske Aid Distribution Center.
This center operates in several areas: bread distribution, food parcels, a massage room, a women’s club, charity dinners, and the psycho-social program of Healing Emotional Trauma.
We will share the feedback with you:
“I am Valentina, 47 years old. I am a resident of Soledar. On May 19, 2022, I was evacuated from my hometown by some volunteers along with my daughter and father. Abandoning my home was very painful. A year and a half ago, we could still keep in touch, but the town is occupied at present. I’m very grateful to the sponsors for their wonderful help, which supports us in this hour of trouble.”
“I am Tamara Vasylivna Mishchenko. I am 60 years old. I have a group 1 disability. In May 2022 I came to the town of Kamianske from a village near the towns of Bakhmut and Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region. My husband died at home. I came here with my son. Our house was destroyed and other property was destroyed also. Thank you very much for your help in this difficult time.”
Dnipro
There are four humanitarian Aid Distribution Points in the city of Dnipro. The aid we distributed this week was food and hygiene kits, eyeglasses, and bread.
Behind the scenes of the distribution points, the volunteers of the ICF Step with Hope organized the following programs:
Children’s program “The Son”
In Novomoskovsk, we organized a felt performance “The Son” for the internally displaced and local children. We are very grateful to Maxim Sotnikov’s team and everyone who participated.
ART therapy for children
In Kryvyi Rih, the Art Therapy for Children program is underway. Children are very happy to participate in such events.
Anti-stress English
This program is conducted by Pavlo Bilan and Natalia Khoroshykh, both coaches and psychologists. They combine English training with approaches that change people’s thinking, helping them build a vision and move forward.
“Healing Your Spiritual Wounds” Group
Soul healing is a process and a path. Sometimes it is complicated, but definitely, it is worth going through. A healthy soul can enjoy life, breathe freely and build healthy relationships with others.
It is easier to move together. We are waiting for you!
Vyshyvanka Day
April 16 was an incredibly wonderful day as we celebrated Vyshyvanka Day. We got together, sang songs, tasted some snacks and sweets and merely enjoyed life. These days we all need positive emotions to withstand the psychological stress.
Let’s hold on and move forward together!
A Meeting with the chaplain
Chaplain Ruslan Sedletsky holds inspiring meetings with those who want to learn more about life and spiritual foundations.
An inspiring meeting in Novomoskovsk
The “Biblical View of the Easter” Program was held in Novomoskovsk. As always, the program itself was engaging, followed by tea and time for heart-to-heart conversations.
