The MHP-Gromadi Charitable Foundation, together with the Children of Heroes Foundation, has implemented the Puzzles of Children’s Dreams project, which has helped make the dreams of five children, whose parents have been killed in the war, come true.
For 9-year-old Vsevolod, a meeting was arranged with his heros, the famous Magic Five illusionists. For 11-year-old Yelyzaveta, a laptop was presented, for her to continue her studies. Daria, 13, was given her first gig as a photo model, marking her first steps in her modeling career. The project also enabled 15-year- old Mykhailo and 9 year old Hera to meet their favorite actor and comedian Yevhen Koshovу.
“The true heroes of our project are the children who have experienced some of the most tragic consequences of the conflict which has taken away their parents.
Whilst we can’t change the past and stop these stories from happening we can now make the dreams of these orphans come true. This is what we are fighting for: the confidence, strength, and faith of our children,” comments Tetiana Volochai, director of the MHP-Gromadi Foundation.
Each story is a tragedy of a family. Vsevolod from Kaniv lost his father in the war. Daria’s father was senselessly shot dead on the street by a drunken occupier. After the tragedy, he and his mother moved from Zaporizhzhia region to Kyiv region to live with relatives. The father of two brothers from Mariupol was killed by a sniper near their home. Now they live in Lviv. Liza’s father was killed in a Russian rocket attack in Kramatorsk. She and her mother miraculously survived and have moved to their relatives in Vinnytsia region.
“It is difficult to establish the exact number of children who lost their parents after February 24, but we are talking about thousands of such tragedies. That is why we have focused our work on overcoming trauma and providing support to children. They have no influence on the situation, cannot make decisions, and often do not understand what is happening to them and why. However, we can help them with psychological support, education, clothing, and equipment and we can make their dreams come true. In this way, we can show that Ukrainians are united and whilst it is difficult for us, we are determined to continue investing in our future, in our children” emphasizes Anna Khomenko, executive director of the Children of Heroes charity foundation.
The project was supported by the Espresso channel, which filmed the realization of children’s dreams. The film crew created a separate video about each story. The stories will be aired on the channel daily at 09:10 right after the news release until February 7, and will also be available
online.
