Bogdan Hrydin and Rusana Sharlai moved from Avdiivka to Myrnohrad in 2014, and then after the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation — to Kyiv, where the couple began humanitarian missions in Donetsk region. He is a programmer, she is a marketer. Together with other volunteers, they traveled around Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Kostiantynivka, Toretsk, Lyman, and Sviatohirsk, where they distributed humanitarian aid to adults and children. To strengthen their mission, the family established the charity fund "Volunteer Union Poruch".
During their work, the union's volunteers distributed almost 70 thousand food, hygiene, and children's kits, provided assistance to 85 thousand people, and delivered 50 thousand kg of animal feed to frontline areas.
“At first, we helped lonely people in Kyiv region, and then we focused on internally displaced persons and people in frontline areas. After all, we are internally displaced persons ourselves and understand people's needs. Those who escaped from hell received items, food packages, and support from us. Many chose to continue volunteering with us,” says Rusana Sharlai.
To socialize internally displaced children, the integration center "PORUCH SPACE" started operating in Kyiv in 2023. Educational courses and creative clubs are available for children, while warm meetings and psychological consultations are organized for adults, helping them adapt to their new environment.
The children's integration center "PORUCH SPACE" welcomes guests with a large flag of Donetsk region bearing the inscription "Eastern Ukrainian Sun". Rusana says they never hide where they came from; on the contrary, they emphasize it. About 90% of the center's visitors are internally displaced persons from various regions of the country, mostly from Donetsk region.
"PORUCH SPACE" has three main areas — career guidance, sports, and creativity. In the career guidance area, classes are held for children and teenagers to help them get acquainted with various professions. The center's sports area is a small hall where dance, fitness, aikido, and hip-hop classes are conducted. In the creative space, children sculpt, paint, and sing; preparatory courses for preschoolers are also held.
For adults, "PORUCH SPACE" hosts support days for internally displaced persons, where lectures and psychological consultations are conducted, and employers are invited to offer job opportunities to the displaced.
“Currently, we have two centers open in Kyiv, and one each in Kramatorsk, Izium, and Pavlohrad — in these cities, classes are held in shelters. We started with creativity, drawing, sculpting, and singing. And now we have a large children's integration center with over 30 clubs and courses,” says Rusana Sharlai.
In the past year, nearly 3 thousand children visited the children's integration centers "PORUCH SPACE".
You can learn about the activities of the charity fund "Volunteer Union Poruch" at the following link: https://www.poruch.org.ua/, and on social media: https://www.instagram.com/poruch_space/, https://www.facebook.com/spilkaporuch/?locale=ru_RU, http://poruch_space/
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