October 8, 2024
News
Every day, thousands of civilians are moving from the frontline of Ukraine in evacuation trains. According to official reports, about 4 million have partially or completely lost their homes as a result of the ongoing attacks. Olga and her four children have settled in the new cosy house built by Caritas Czech Republic in the village of Neresnytsia in Transcarpathia. Here, in a modular town, they are joined by 30 other displaced people from the eastern and southern regions.
Olga from Kherson: “My income would not be enough for rent”
The hostess greets us with a warm smile as she opens the door to her new home. It still smells of fresh wood, and there are boxes of kitchen equipment on the floor. Her children eagerly welcomed us: 7-year-old Artem, 11-year-old Ivan, 15-year-old Volodymyr, and 17-year-old Tatiana.
Since her husband's death, Olga has been both their father and mother. The family lived under occupation for 3 months and barely managed to evacuate. Olga recalls how difficult it was for the family to leave their frontline village in the Kherson region in March 2022.
”We fled as we could... At first, through forest belts and villages,” she says.
In the Transcarpathian region, the family knew an elderly woman who temporarily sheltered the mother and her four children in her village house near Neresnytsia. Olga's home in the Kherson region was damaged, but she still believes that she will be able to return someday.
Before the war, 45-year-old Olga worked in the village community centre and looked after an elderly woman. Now she is an assistant nanny in a preschool, earning 130 euros a month. But this is not enough for the family to afford decent living conditions. So Olga was delighted when she was offered one of the 10 houses in the modular town built by Caritas Czech Republic in the village of Neresnytsia.
“If it was not for this opportunity, my income would not be enough to rent such a good place,” Olga notes.
The car became a lifesaver for a large family, and the house turned into a hope
Hard-working and determined, Olga learned to drive and got a driving licence in her new place. Locals helped her buy an old car, which was essential in the village. It became a lifesaver for the family when Volodymyr, who had been delicate since birth, underwent surgery and was unable to walk.
The middle children Artem and Ivan are unpacking new dishes. The family is preparing for dinner.
“Now we are going to try out the gifted microwave and stove,“ Olga says. “The appliances, furniture, bathroom - everything is new. The house is small, but warm and in the centre of the village. We are happy with it,“ she smiles.
Like all Ukrainians, Olga wants the war to end foremost. She says that here, in safety and comfort, she has hope and strength to live.
How Caritas Czech Republic provides housing for displaced families in safer areas
Since the beginning of the war, Caritas Czech Republic has been assisting people affected by the conflict. Apart from immediate humanitarian aid, we also provide shelter to internally displaced persons in modular houses in Western Ukraine and improve living conditions in collective sites.
All the modular houses were handed over to the communities as humanitarian aid and the families live there for free.
“The houses are typical for all our locations and have an area of 30 square metres each. They are designed to accommodate 3-4 people. We focused primarily on families with young children. We also built a well to avoid problems with drinking water,” says Natalia Mackova, project manager at Caritas Czech Republic in Ukraine.
The houses were built as part of a project funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
Services and territory improvement were provided by the Neresnytsia Village Council, while furniture, necessary household appliances, linen and utensils were provided to the families by the Slovak humanitarian organisation People in Peril. The houses are fully equipped for living and are located on the polyclinic's territory in the centre of the village. There is a shelter here. Not far away is the ‘’Miloserdya‘’ children's rehabilitation centre relocated from Donetsk region.
In total, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion during 2022-2024, Caritas Czech Republic together with partners and local authorities, has built 4 modular sites in the Transcarpathian region - in the cities of Mukachevo and Svaliava, as well as in the villages of Serednie (Uzhhorod district) and Neresnytsia (Tyachiv district). The 43 modular houses have become a new home for 140 internally displaced Ukrainians forced to seek shelter from constant enemy shelling. We are also renovating the dormitories for displaced people in three regions of Ukraine - Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Transcarpathia.
Caritas Czech Republic in Ukraine
Caritas Czech Republic has been helping people in Ukraine since the beginning of the war. In addition to providing much needed humanitarian aid, we also provide shelter to internally displaced people in modular houses in western Ukraine. We are also improving living conditions in dormitories.
In western Ukraine, we support Ukrainians who have decided to stand on their own feet after evacuating from the war zone. Through minigrants, we support the restoration of livelihoods for people in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and the Transcarpathian region. The aim is to help people affected by the war to rebuild their income sources, develop a career or start their own business.
In eastern Ukraine, we improve the accessibility and quality of rehabilitation and reproductive medicine by modernising hospitals and educating staff. In the South, we restorе water supply, insulate homes, and provide firewood for heating in frontline villages.
