Build first aid kits, sew plate carriers, load humanitarian aid: how IDPs volunteer in Chernivtsi
Evacuation.City journalist spent one day with volunteers of the organization “The Spirit of the Nation”, talked to IDPs who work there, and asked them about their engagement and their personal needs.
Civic organization “The Spirit of the Nation” unites volunteers and entrepreneurs assisting the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and IDPs in Bukovyna region.
Why and with Whom Evacuees in Chernivtsi Volunteer
Valeriy has left occupied Kakhovka
Valeriy Kopeyko, an entrepreneur, got evacuated with his daughter to Chernivtsi from Nova Kakhovka in mid-April. The war began for them at 4 AM on February 24, before the start of the working day. At 8 AM the city was already occupied by Russians. When people woke up, Russian soldiers were walking around with machine guns.
Valeriy recollects the occupants conducting searches among the locals in the first place: they were looking for ATO participants, police officers, activists, and journalists. They filled the basements with kidnapped people in the first days of the war. Moreover, Russians looted en masse. There were no massive rallies in the city, people were scared.
Together with his daughter the man left Kakhovka through Snihurivka when active fighting was ongoing around. They encountered tanks on their way and had to pass 13 checkpoints. They were checked, their belongings were examined, and they were asked about their destination. The man recalls evacuation unwillingly.
Having arrived in Chernivtsi, Valeriy’s family got lucky to find accommodation at a reasonable price. The man has not found a job yet, they live on his pension and personal savings. In Nova Kakhovka, Valeriy used to be an entrepreneur selling agricultural seeds and fertilizers. He had to leave everything to a friend who transferred him money from housing rental. This is not possible anymore.
“They stream their TV and accuse Ukrainians of everything, including having switched people off from payment systems and telecom services. Also, they talk about the AFU’s defeats on all fronts. Food and drugs are delivered from Crimea. The “ATB” retail chain has been renamed into “Pyaterochka” [a popular Russian chain — translator’s note], Russian passports are handed out in the city council building,” — this is how Valeriy describes the recent developments in Nova Kakhovka.
According to him, most patriots have left the city. Those who remained are the people who could not afford to pay UAH 5,000-8,000 for the journey.
Valeriy has been acquainted with Vasyl Shkrobanets, the leader of the volunteer organization “The Spirit of the Nation”, through business; therefore, after his arrival [in Chernivtsi — translator’s note], he decided to help entrepreneurs who united in the volunteer movement.
Volunteer team of the NGO “The Spirit of the Nation”
While we talked to Valeriy Kopeyko, other team members were busy loading humanitarian aid, making sandwiches for the soldiers, and responding to phone calls.
Vasyl Shkrobanets, the entrepreneur, has been volunteering since 2014. In the past, he used to provide assistance only to the military. He says that this war has expanded the range of people in need: the list is complemented by forced migrants.
“We can also find ourselves in such a situation. We should definitely help,” — Vasyl says.
At the beginning of the war, the Kalynivskyi market became almost the only place where one could buy the first necessities for IDPs and the military.
Valentyna Peshko, an entrepreneur
Jobs for IDPs in Chernivtsi
"This is Anya. She is the greatest cutter. She got evacuated from Kyiv at the beginning of March. She used to make over 100 patterns of plate carriers per day. We celebrated her birthday in our workshop,” — Valentyna says.
Currently, the entrepreneur together with her team is focused on sewing tactical trauma bandages and first aid kits for the soldiers.
Eight people work in the volunteers-entrepreneurs team on a regular basis. Besides that, they receive help from Ukrainians abroad. The organization’s premise is located on the roadside, and, commonly, IDPs drop in asking for help. Valentyna says that they always do their best to help others and no one leaves their place empty-handed.
Inna Bendas, a volunteer at “The Spirit of the Nation”, demonstrates a drawing of an internally displaced girl expressing gratitude for her new clothes
Meet another volunteer — Anna Bukharova. Anna got evacuated to Chernivtsi on March 10 from Zaporizhzhia. She left the city after a shell landed near her house. Anna is a physician by education, and she decided to go to Chernivtsi because a friend of hers lived there.
Anna is a native of Novovorontsovka, Kherson region. Currently, the village she comes from is sort of a buffer zone, the area around has been occupied. The situation with food and medication is difficult on the ground.
Anna Bukharova, a volunteer
“I went away with my son for a week, but eventually stayed for longer,” — Anna told us.
The woman got engaged in volunteering due to her friend because “The Spirit of the Nation” needed physicians. The very next day after her arrival she started to help.
“We used to build first aid kits and sort imported medications. But if we needed to unload or upload a car, we did it as well,” the volunteer says.
Recently, Anna has moved to another volunteer organization, “Bukos”; together with her son, she rents an apartment and works remotely. She is a cosmetologist by profession. Lately, she has conducted seminars for physicians from the beauty industry in Chernivtsi. Although now Anna helps another organization, she often works together with “The Spirit of the Nation”.
As Oksana Koval says, when creating an entrepreneurial volunteer movement, they relied on Vasyl Shkrobanets’s experience but added their own elements.
Oksana Koval, a volunteer at the NGO “The Spirit of the Nation”
“Previously, the war and people’s needs used to be local and not so massive. To cover the needs, we work together with the Ukrainian diaspora and engage relatives, godparents, and friends living abroad. Although we focus on assisting the military, we haven’t refused help to any IDP: we provided them with diapers, oil, pasta, or puree. We share everything we have,” Oksana says.
The woman recalls long queues of people who needed help from the city at the beginning of March.
“They could get a bottle of water, some pasta. In despair, they came to us. They told us that before the war, they stood firmly on their own feet, and now they are forced to ask for assistance, which makes them feel uncomfortable. In three months, we developed a list of the most needed items: medication, food, hygienic products, underwear, socks, sleeping mats and bags, etc.,” Oksana Koval sums up.
