The photo shows a house in Oleksandrivka, Novhorod-Siverskyi Raion, Chernihivska Oblast, which was home to the Kondratenko family. It was damaged by Russian missiles.
“On the morning of April 29, 2023, the bombardment began. Around 6 a.m. we went to another village. Already at half past nine, we were informed that our house had been destroyed. There were several hits. The windows were shattered, the barn and the bathhouse were smashed. After a while we went to Oleksandrivka and saw the extent of the destruction with our own eyes: one wall was missing, windows were smashed, and the slate was broken. It was horrible, just horrible,” Nataliya Kondratenko, a mother of multiple children, recalls the day of the air strike.
In between the constant strikes, the Kondratenkos tried to come and retrieve at least some of their belongings. Now the family has moved to another village in Chernihivska Oblast, where they have been given a house for temporary use and are trying to equip their refuge with the things they managed to salvage.
“If we had not left then, no one would have survived. I have three underage children. My youngest daughter is 1 year and 8 months old,” Nataliya says.
Rebuilding the damaged house is a difficult and expensive task. The family welcomes any help that would enable them to have their own home again.
The Kondratenkos became one of 11 families in the Semenivska community to receive slate to repair their roofs from the Charity Foundation Stabilization Support Services with the support of Choose Love.
“The Semenivska community, one of the northernmost in Ukraine, suffers from enemy bombardment every day. Now the people who suffered from the attacks have received slate and will be able to repair their damaged roofs. This is a great support for our community. We are grateful to Stabilization Support Services and Choose Love for their assistance,” said Semenivka Mayor Serhiy Dedenko.