Church in Fastiv, Ukraine, gives school supplies and support to families displaced by war

In the town of Fastiv, a church-based aid center operates from a building on a quiet alley. Young mothers with their children waited in the wide corridor, and the center’s director, Julia, described the work as directed toward helping people affected by the war.

Julia said that all newly arriving displaced people are directed to the center, which provides help to them. The center also works to get children into school. Its activities include a group for psychological support that meets once in a set period, and women from several places have been in contact with the center often. Julia said a creative master class held recently was enjoyed by participants.

The center also held end-of-year events for students. Graduates received their diplomas, and the center gave preschoolers backpacks filled with school supplies, which the report presents as help for children who have no parents with them. A new school year was described as beginning with a class event, and the center is planning patriotic events.

Father Vitaly, who leads the church’s work, said the effort began with people, and he said that good people had been sent to help. He said the center plans to expand by building two more offices and starting a program for young people on psychological adjustment to life, including life during wartime.

Father Vitaly recalled that when full-scale war reached the city, a humanitarian corridor to Kyiv was the first point of focus, and the center received considerable help. He said the center worked with a range of partners and that the project developed from those early efforts.

Another participant, Mr. Michael, spoke about cultural enlightenment activities and about a T-shirt doll belonging to his wife from the first days of the war. He said the doll would be returned, and he showed a picture of the Ukrainian flag as part of the center’s work.

Source: Read the original report (translated from Ukrainian)