Olena Mekhedko - participant of the regional contest "Woman of Donetsk Region" in 2025, nomination "Heart that Gives a Family"
Olena Mekhedko is a woman whose heart has become a home for eleven children.
She began her professional career at the Velykonovosilkovo registry office, where she first met a little boy who had been abandoned by his mother. Despite severe diagnoses, she saw a gift and meaning in him. In 2010, she created a foster family and later a family-type orphanage.
The war forced the family to leave their home, but it did not break them. Olena stayed in Ukraine because she is convinced that only at home can children grow up strong and patriotic. In 2022-2024, she took in several more children who needed a family.
Today, 10 foster children are being brought up in her home, and 1 foster child has already started his adult life. The children study at a music school, attend clubs, play sports, travel, and learn from tutors. The main thing is that they feel love, support and safety.
Olena has two degrees in law and psychology, and is currently studying to become a psychotherapist at Kyiv University. In 2025, together with her children, she took courses organized by the NGO Creative Hub Berezhany, where they received certificates of 2nd category seamstresses.
For her, it is not only a new profession, but also therapy and an example for children: it is never too late to learn. Olena dreams of developing social entrepreneurship to support women and create jobs. She actively participates in the foster family forums "The Happiness of a Child is to Grow Up in a Family," is a co-founder of the NGO "Born with Heart," and provides legal and psychological support to other parents.
Olena's motto: "My biggest victory is children's smiles. My biggest dream is a peaceful Ukraine without orphans."
Her example proves that one person can change the world for dozens of children.
Read the detailed story of the contestant here: https://surl.li/qgimim