Contestant of the regional competition "Young Person of the Year – 2025" in the "Heart Devoted to the Donetsk Region" category Anastasiia Budko
My name is Anastasiia Budko. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, my family, like thousands of others, was forced to leave our home. However, neither in my heart nor in my actions do I abandon my native region. I currently live in the city of Bila Tserkva, Kyiv region, and work remotely as a pedagogical organizer at the "Dobropillia Lyceum of the Kryvyi Rih Village Council of the Pokrovsk District of the Donetsk Region." I remain faithful to my calling—to bring knowledge to children and to maintain a connection with the Donetsk region despite all the trials.
My life is closely tied to the Donetsk region. I was forced to complete my studies at Donbas State Pedagogical University in Sloviansk (evacuated to the city of Dnipro) remotely, obtaining a profession that became not only a career but also my life's work. It was in the Donetsk region that I became a teacher and formed as a person and a citizen. And that is why, even after forced displacement, I remained faithful to my native school, my native land, and its children.
I currently work remotely, conducting online events every day, creating interactive assignments, and using modern digital platforms for students who, like me, are often in different regions of the country. I not only educate children, I also support them morally, because I know how important it is today for the young residents of the Donetsk region to have a connection with a teacher who understands them and shares their pain and hopes. I actively participate in all-Ukrainian conferences, seminars, and training for educators. I improve my qualifications to more effectively support students, use the latest teaching methods, and maintain the quality of education even in the most difficult conditions. I also participate in events dedicated to the psychological support of children and teachers, issues of adaptation in wartime, and the preservation of national identity and historical memory.
The forced displacement to another region of Ukraine became not only a change of residence but also the beginning of a new, difficult stage marked by personal tragedy. The news that my husband, a soldier whom I had just married, went missing while defending our land, became a deep wound. However, despite this unspeakable pain, I found the strength to live on, to fight, and to give new life—we recently had a baby boy. This event is a ray of hope, a symbol of the continuation of life and faith in the bright future we are fighting for. My little son is an inexhaustible source of strength and inspiration, and faith in victory and the revival of our native region never fades. I firmly believe in my husband's return and that he will still be involved in raising our son.
I am inspired by the Donetsk region—brave, free, and unconquered. My colleagues, students, and parents of the children—all of us together form a space where education remains a powerful force of unity and hope. We support each other, help one another, and share experiences so that every child, regardless of their location, feels that they are not alone, they are remembered, and they are cared for.
In addition to my professional activities, I try to be useful in volunteering as well. I regularly make donations to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, participate in initiatives to support the wounded and displaced, and help in fundraising and charitable projects.
A special place in my heart is occupied by my father, who remains in the Donetsk region and works as a miner. His daily work is an example of resilience, love for the land, and responsibility. His presence there is a living thread that connects me even more strongly to my native land.
Despite the forced displacement, my connection with my native Donetsk region is alive, strong, and real. Every day, I work for its future, passing on knowledge, love for Ukraine, and memory of my native land to the children. In my heart forever lives the belief in the restoration of the Donetsk region, in returning to our native school, to the streets that remember children's voices, to the sunrises over the steppes where a new generation of Ukrainians is growing.
I am a teacher from the Donetsk region. I am a hero's wife. I am a mother. I am a citizen who, with my daily work, brings victory closer. My heart is forever with the Donetsk region.