Veggies are on the way!
One of the most influential and anticipated projects of the eleemosynary organization IBF Step with Hope is always the agricultural project supported by Ukraine TrustChain. For several weeks in a row, we have been actively distributing planting material, namely, seeds and seedlings. And even in our complicated and unpredictable times, when it is impossible to plan anything for tomorrow, people are actively requesting planting material deliveries. Now, that is faith in “tomorrow”! Surely, we are happy to reinforce their faith and hope for it.
This week, we distributed more than 1,000 sets of seedlings, which had tomato, pepper and cabbage seedlings in its contents. More than 200 sets were distributed in the town of Kamianske, 100 sets were distributed in Verkhnodniprovsk, Vilnohirsk and Piatykhatky. Plenty of sets were distributed in several villages of Dnipropetrovsk and Kherson regions in the Nikopol district. According to our rough estimates, more than 500 families were provided with seedlings this week alone.
We will share the feedback with you:
“Good afternoon! I am a resident of Znamianka village, Kharkiv district. On behalf of myself and other people, we thank you for the humanitarian aid, a.i. the seedlings.”
“I am an IDP from Luhansk region, namely from the city of Lysychansk. Presently, I’m living in Kamianske. Earlier I received a land plot for use and have just received seedlings to plant on it. I am very grateful for your help and hope for a good harvest. Thank you for everything!”
“We, the residents of Verkhnodniprovsk, would like to express our deep gratitude to the IBF Step with Hope and the sponsors for such an assistance.”
“Many thanks for such help in the village of Pechenihy. We would like to thank everyone who had their good hands in making it happen.”
“Zhovti Vody is grateful to the sponsors for the help provided to the town’s residents and IDPs. Thank you!”
Non-fictional stories from the Donetsk region
Vitalii, his wife, and their youngest son came from near Liman, the village of Drobyshevo, Donetsk region. Their eldest son is a police officer. On February 25, 2022, the young man was going to get married, but the war made its adjustments. The village was heavily shelled. Their house was terribly damaged by missile attacks, the roof was perforated by shrapnel, and the garage was completely destroyed.
Vitalii and his family first went to Uman, where they were given a room on the top floor of a dormitory. For people from the countryside, it is always extremely hard to move to a multi-story building. So in June 2022, at the first opportunity to move to a house in Dnipro, they did just that, not knowing anyone there. Now they are renting a house. Finding a job is a real challenge, but they do not despair, as they live off what they grow in the garden. They are very grateful for the seedlings provided.
“My name is Olga Protsenko. I am 39 years old. I am an internally displaced person. In May 2022 my family came from Dniprorudnyi, Vasyliv district, Zaporizhzhia region, to the town of Kobeliaky, Poltava region. We rented a private house with a garden plot. There are four of us: my husband, me, and our two daughters, aged 14 and 16. My husband and I have jobs. But our salary is barely enough for food and housing. All our property and most of the necessary things were left behind in our occupied hometown. So we have to buy vital things from scratch. Our family is very grateful for the repeated assistance provided by the IBF Step with Hope. I have just received the seedlings. The land on my garden plot is ready for planting. This is a significant help for us. Although I am an accountant by profession, I love working on the land. Thanks again for your help!”
“I, Liudmyla Revunova, am a 72-year-old pensioner and an IDP. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, I was forced to move from the occupied Luhansk region with my daughter’s family. Dear charitable organization! I would like to thank you sincerely for your invaluable help in the form of free vegetable seedlings. Your support is extremely important to me and my family, especially in the context of displacement from my hometown due to the occupation. You do good deeds that add warmth and hope to my life. Thank you for your generosity and care!”
The abandoned apartments of Kherson
Another problem in Kherson is abandoned apartments. It is where there are no people that lots of mice start to abide. At first, it is not noticeable, but then people who live in the neighborhood of such apartments begin to feel the problem of the invasion of these small rodents. This week, the team of volunteers of the IBF Step with Hope continued to help the city residents get rid of the annoying pests in their basements, apartments, and private houses.
We have also visited apartments where no one has lived for more than a year, and whose owners had left the keys to their neighbors and asked them to take care of the property. In such premises, you don’t immediately realize that it was, actually, the mice that made all the mess. Looking at it for the first time it seems like a hurricane has passed through. We would never have thought that a small animal could do so much damage. But the smell they leave behind speaks for itself. In some abandoned apartments, it is simply impossible to breathe.
So we are moving on, from apartment to apartment, from house to house, from basement to basement, to free our city from the invasion of these small pests that have literally overrun the city.
Helping out in the Donetsk region
This week in the settlements of Kostyantynivka and Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, we have distributed 100 loaves of bread, and 50 pairs of eyeglasses with the support of our partners Restoring Vision. We have brought sweets to the children and provided free hairdressing services to 13 people. We helped one woman to get crutches and heard a touching story of a family we are now willing to help.
That’s the family of a 9-year-old boy, named Yurii. When he was 6 years old, his mother died in front of him. This affected his health: he started to have epileptic seizures. The boy underwent two operations to remove a tumor. Now he is a cheerful and kind young man, knowing tons of poems by heart. He studies at an online school. His father does not work because he is always with little Yurii. The two of them live with the grandmother. Their only income is his grandmother’s pension and social benefits, which hardly affect the family’s difficult financial situation. This boy dreams of having a bicycle and needs many other things that almost all children can afford. We have decided to continue taking care of this family.
Kharkiv region with help
Let’s start the talk of the courageous Kharkiv and the harsh Kharkiv region with a thank-you note:
“My name is Elina Trofimenko, I am 74 years old. I was forced to leave my home in Kharkiv due to practically daily shelling. My daughter and her children have gone abroad. My son does some volunteer work. And I have moved temporarily to the village of Znamianka. At the moment, very few places provide humanitarian aid. But in this village, they give out bread regularly. I thank the IBF Step with Hope for helping people, helping us, the pensioners. I wish you and your families health and peace as soon as possible!”
Indeed, people are receiving less and less help now than in the early days of the war. Funds are no longer operating, and sponsors no longer think that people still need help, while some may need it even more than earlier.
We try to be constant in our attitude towards people and our desire to help. That is why our team went to the Kharkiv region. We distributed bread and food packages in Mala Danylivka, Derhachi, Bogodukhiv, Novostepanivka, and Kharkiv itself. As always, we held kids’ classes with sports equipment and conducted entertaining games.
Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk region
This week we also received grateful feedback from another organization of disabled children in Nikopol. “The ordinary extraordinary” is how they call themselves. We have been helping them for about two years now, and at present about 70 children with disabilities are under our care. They thank us from the bottom of their hearts for this.
This week we also made a significant trip to the village of Mendelieivka to distribute water. The villagers have not had any water supply for two and a half years! You should have seen the way the villagers greeted us when they realized we had brought them ordinary drinking water. They showered us with thanks in every yard. And we were happy to be able to help.
Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk region
A wonderful holiday for children was held in Pavlohrad. Six locations were organized as follows: “Drawing a Dream” arts station, “Fun Starts” sports games & activities, “Make a lamb” crafting, “Feel & Find the candy” game, trampoline, and parachute. Each kid received a heart with his or her name on it, and at each station, they also received petals for completing the tasks. At the end of the event, everyone formed a heart-shaped flower and received rewards for participating in the entertainment program. Sweets and coloring books were given as prizes.
Food distribution was also organized. The gratitude was not long in coming.
“I am Svetlana, a single mother. Your help is crucial to me. I have two children and every time I receive any kind of assistance I try to thank everyone helping me out.”
Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region
This week we made several trips from Kryvyi Rih to Novoyulivka and Sofiivka. The purpose was to deliver food packages and bread to hospitals and distribution centers in the city and around the district. Also, at the request of many, psychological and social trainings were conducted for IDPs and victims of war losses. The total weight of the humanitarian cargo was about 2900 kg.
Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region
The work of the volunteer center in the Kamianske district was standard and planned. We distributed bread and food packages, handed out seedlings and received words of thanks, organized needlework classes at the Berehynia Women’s Club, and organized charity dinners and the Healing Your Soul Wounds psycho-social program. The massage room worked almost without any breaks; clothes and eyeglasses were given to everyone; and a new project was launched: the laundry service, which, as it turned out, was needed by many. So now we have got a collection of grateful words.
“My name is Valentyna Mykolaivna. I am 33 years old and I am a resident of Sukha Balka, Donetsk region. In September 2022, I left my home with my three children, my mother, and my husband because it was too dangerous to stay. In the town of Kamianske, we are renting an apartment. I am very grateful to the sponsors for their kind help, it is a significant support in the time of need.”
“My name is Volodymyr, I am 60 years old, a resident of Kamianske. Before the war, I worked at the Dnipro Azot plant, but it has been closed due to the combat operations. I am grateful to the sponsors for the wonderful eyeglasses, which are impossible to do without nowadays.”
“Olga, 71, a resident of Bakhmut. In the first days of the war, my daughter and I were taken to Dnipro by the last evacuation bus by volunteers, to whom we are very grateful. Now we are renting an apartment in Kamianske. Our home was destroyed and we have nowhere to go back to. I am grateful to the sponsors and volunteers for the free bread, it is a great support for me. I wish you all health, blessings, and peace.”
Psycho-social area of activity of the EO “IBF “Step with Hope”
Kid’s program
A wonderful holiday for children was held at the Harmony Center for IDPs. Cognitive and entertaining programs for children and interesting practices to overcome stress were organized.
Theater event for teenagers
Did you know that adolescence is considered to be the best age for talent and creativity? We do, and that’s why Victoria Yeremenko, a children’s trainer and teacher, always devotes a lot of time and effort to teenage creativity. You can see for yourself what the results are!
Anti-stress English
As always, we learned some new words and talked about everyday topics. But this time the communication was more active because unfinished themes from the group’s chat in the telegram have been increasingly creeping into real reflections and discussions in the classroom.
“Healing Your Soul Wounds” Group
Pain in your soul poisons your life, prevents you from moving forward, and affects your relationships. But it is possible to get rid of it. We will learn how to achieve that every week at the meetings of the Healing Your Soul Wounds program.
“Overcoming adversity” Meeting
Chaplain and spiritual director Ruslan Sedletsky is always happy to welcome new people to the meeting. I’ll tell you a secret, he is very happy when he finds out that someone from his team has shared their fear, sadness or anxiety. He also devotedly prays for each participant of his meetings.
