Last week, representatives of the International Anti-Corruption Assembly (IACA) went on a working visit to Lviv region.
Oleksii Zamorenyi, Head of IACA’s department in Siversk, Donetsk region, is currently in the village of Zabolottsi, Brody district, Lviv region. Oleksiy is a pastor and volunteer (over 7 years) who founded a hospice for elderly, lonely people with special needs and physical disabilities in Siversk.
In February 2022, he had to leave Siversk with all his patients due to the intensification of military operations in the Donetsk region. The evacuation was not easy. On two large buses, with the patients lying on stretchers in “2 tiers”, taking all possible household appliances, we had to move from place to place to find more favorable conditions for living, because the patients needed certain conditions. The first night was spent in a church in the city of Oleksandriya, which hosted people in transit. The next destination was the village of Tuchyn, Hoshcha district, Rivne region, where the Mission stayed for two weeks, the village of Redkov in the Krupets village community of Dubno district, and finally, in August 2022, the head of the Zabolottsi village community, Mariia Volodymyrivna Dyskant, responded to Oleksiy’s request. The villagers of Zabolottsi repaired the premises provided by the Mission on their own. Now there are 21 people in the hospice. Various charitable foundations and public organizations provide food, hygiene products and other items needed by the hospice.
On June 30, 2023, IACA Secretary General Vyacheslav Sayenko awarded Oleksiy and his benefactors of the “Son’s Heart” Mission with the ” Badge of Honor” – the “Gratitude of the World from the Ukrainian People for the Humanitarian Component of the Victory” Award.
The award was given to:
Oleksiy Zamorenyi, Lina Liadnyk, Serhiy Moiseev and Sabina Moiseeva, Serhiy Neschotnyi, Yevheniya Brues and her son Yegor Breus, who is only 8 years old and always happy to help and talk, and, of course, the virtuoso chef Yana Khursa, who, despite the prescribed diets for the hospice residents, manages to surprise and delight them with delicious and home-made cooking
The award was also presented to Oksana Martyn, a doctor at a community hospital who comes to the hospice for routine examinations of Oleksiy and his team.
IACA representatives made a visit to the Zabolottsi Village Community Council and met with the Council Chairperson Mariia Volodymyrivna Dyscant and Vasyl Petrovych Smereka.
Mariia Dyskant agreed to give a short interview in which she described how their community helps IDPs and victims.
Such a small town was able to become a place of refuge for the displaced. The residents of Zabolottsi are friendly and sincere in helping those in need, providing them with shelter, warmth, care and even the opportunity to find a job. And for some, this settlement has become a new home.
For their volunteer work, Mariia Volodymyrivna and Vasyl Petrovych were awarded the “Badge of Honor” – the “Gratitude of the World from the Ukrainian People for the Humanitarian Component of the Victory” award.
On this day, Vyacheslav Sayenko and Oleksiy Zamoreniy visited foundations and volunteer organizations that help not only IDPs and victims, but also military personnel of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and other military formations to award volunteers with the Heroes Award in this difficult time.
«Slava»
The “Slava” volunteer organization (Hai village, Rivne region), which had been helping the military in the ATO zone until February 24, 2022, has been uniting to help our soldiers on the front line since the introduction of martial law in Ukraine. They deliver humanitarian supplies in the Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions… They go wherever help is needed… They cooperate with many foundations in Ukraine.
The award “Gratitude of the World from the Ukrainian People for the Humanitarian Component of the Victory” has found its heroes:
Iryna Peretyatko, the founder of the organization, Mykhailo Zagursky, Olga Zagurska, Bohdan Lysak, Ihor Raletz, Yaroslav Hula, Andriy Kazmiruk, Yaroslav Bondar, Oleksandr Dykun, Mykhailo Nidzelsky, Andriy Voznyuk and Oksana Korchemna.
After the award ceremony, Iryna agreed to tell us briefly about her team.
In a conversation with Iryna Peretyatko, we learned that there is a small restaurant on the road in the village Sytne, whose owners, Mariia and Ivan Lishchuk, organized free lunches for the military. Viacheslav Sayenko strongly insisted that this fact deserved attention. And in 15 minutes the Award found the next “Heroes”.
They are:
Mariia Lishchuk, Ivan Lishchuk, Liudmyla Benyshchuk and Mariia Kobiuk.
«PATRIOT-UA»
Since April 8, 2022, the Patriot-UA Charitable Foundation (PATRIOT-UA CF CO) (Yaseniv village, Lviv region, Zolochiv district) has been actively involved in providing (delivering) ammunition, food, and aerial surveillance equipment to military personnel located directly in the areas of contact with the aggressor. It is also involved in the formation and transportation of humanitarian cargo from abroad.
Great teamwork is aimed at bringing Victory closer!
The award has found its Heroes:
Oleksandr Barashkevych, director and one of the founders of the organization, Oleh Derevyanko, one of the founders of the organization, Volodymyr Shchyrba, Roman Chornobai, Yuriy Pashulia, Volodymyr Karaim, Ivanna Karaim, Yana Fedorchuk and Alla Poleha.
“Krayanochka”
Representatives of the “Krayanochka” group, women who organize charity concerts to raise funds to help the Ukrainian army and help with food, also came to the Patriot-UA office.
They also help internally displaced persons to find housing, food, clothes, registration and registration of IDP assistance for living in the village of Mytnytsia in the Krupetska village community of Dubno district, Rivne region.
IACA representatives were honored to hear several songs performed by the choir.
For the help provided to our Defenders, for the help provided to people who need it, Vyacheslav Sayenko awarded these wonderful women with the “Badge of Honor”.
The awards were given to:
Galina Chernyakhovich, Svetlana Shishkina, Nadezhda Lyakhovich, Inna Lyakhovich, Larisa Borutskaya, Valentina Povroznik, Anna Tyman, Zoya Khomova.
“Women’s Perspectives Center”
Also on that day, IACA representatives visited the Zabolotsi Center for Culture, Leisure and Sports, where the workshop of the NGO “Women’s Perspectives Center” is located. Representatives of the center participated in the “Volunteer Kitchen”, prepared meals for the Defenders of Ukraine, IDPs who moved from the Eastern regions of Ukraine, wove nets and knitted bedding.
The awards “Gratitude of the World from the Ukrainian People for the Humanitarian Component of the Victory” were given to:
Mariia Rodzyvyl, Maryna Kokina, Yana Kokina, Heorhiy Mykolayenko, Tamara Mohyla, Mariana Banyas, Viktoriia Tutova, Olha Misiura, Vasyl Dzhaz, Iryna Zmysla, Liudmyla Fedotenko, Nadiya Padiuk, Halyna Sushanska, and Orysia Dudchak.
“Let’s Defend Ukraine Together”
On July 1, 2023, representatives of the IACA visited the office of the Public Initiative of the Volunteer Center “Let’s Defend Ukraine Together”. The founder of the center, Viktor Palas, spoke about the center’s activities, the organization of workshops for the production of camouflage nets, stoves, stretchers, pillows and blankets for our military at the front.
Viktor Palas is a civic activist, representative of the Lviv branch of the NGO Stop Corruption, and head of the volunteer center “Let’s Defend Ukraine Together”.
We interviewed Viktor Palas.
The next day, on July 2, before going to the workshop locations, we stopped by Viktor’s office and interviewed Ihor Borshch, a student volunteer, and Oksana Hrynkiv, a member of the center.
A workshop for sewing portable stretchers and first aid kits – a secluded workshop in the village of Kurovychi is located in a quiet corner where geese with chicks walk the streets without fear.
The owner of the workshop is Halyna Kliuchkovska, a member of the volunteer center “Let’s Defend Ukraine Together,” who sews trench hammocks that can be transformed into medical stretchers, as well as medical stretchers for the Ukrainian Armed Forces and first aid kits. In addition, she prepares pieces of fabric for weaving camouflage nets. It also provides humanitarian aid to the population and IDPs in the form of free clothing.
The next location, a separate section of the volunteer center “Let’s Defend Ukraine Together” was not too far from the first. Ihor Kliuchkovsky organized a workshop for the production of stoves for the project “Stoves-Heaters for the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. Together with his son Nazar and partner Oleh Mahrel, they weld these portable stoves from pipes, sheet steel and rebar and send them to the Center for further transportation to the front.
One of the several camouflage net weaving stations operated by Adriana and Nazar Kliuchkovsky is located on the same territory.
On this day, we also visited another stove-making workshop in Lviv. Ihor Stasyk makes portable stoves from cylinders.
On July 3, representatives of the IAСA again visited the office of the volunteer center ” Let’s Defend Ukraine Together”. This time, to reward the center’s camouflage net weavers.
The award went to:
Viktor Palas, the founder of the volunteer center, Oksana Hrinkiv, Lyubov Ksondzyk, Hanna Hlova, Olga Korotenko, Oksana Baskova, Iryna Mohish, Hanna Komarnytska, Stepan Semkiv, Ihor Stasyk and Ihor Romaniv.
Also on this day, we managed to visit a sewing workshop in Lviv, where other workers are sewing pillows, sleeping bags and chuns (warm boot covers) for our defenders in preparation for the cold season. All of them told us a bit about themselves in an interview.
For their efforts and diligence, the Center’s participants received the “Heroes” awards.
Among them: Nila Didyk, Lyubov Torbun and Valentina Prikhodchenko.
Summarizing the results of this business trip on the way to Kyiv, the IACA representatives once again became convinced that our People, who unite in difficult times, are INVINCIBLE! From the smallest to the largest, we are making history by participating in the fight against the enemy both at the front and in the rear. The help of ordinary people supports our defenders. Everyone – who can, with everything they can. Someone donates, someone bakes pies, someone cooks dumplings, cutlets, dry rations, someone brings clothes, someone comes and helps to sort, weave, sew, repair, create…
There are ” Heroes” everywhere – both at the front and in the rear.