This winter was especially difficult for 78-year-old Hanna from Sumy. In November of last year, two Shahed drones exploded near her home, damaging her windows and five neighboring houses. Kind-hearted people helped board up the shattered windows with plywood, but the cold still seeped inside.
“I don’t have money for new window panes. I live with my daughter, who is currently unemployed, and rely on my small pension only. For the winter, I bought firewood. We heated the house with a stove and tried to save as much as we could. We only used gas for cooking. It wasn’t easy,” the woman recalls.
In early March, Hanna’s granddaughter, who now lives in Poltavska Oblast, found out about the opportunity to receive fuel briquettes from the Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services.” Understanding the hardships her grandmother was facing, she immediately registered her for assistance.
“Recently, they delivered two tons of briquettes to me and stacked them neatly in the yard. This is much-needed help! Even though it’s no longer winter outside, the temperatures still drop at night, so it’s hard to live without heating. Thanks to these briquettes, I can save a bit on firewood and set some aside for the next heating season. My daughter and I are very grateful to your foundation, we didn’t believe until the very end that something like this was even possible,” says the pensioner.
According to Nina Cherniavska, the Foundation’s regional coordinator in Sumska Oblast, 400 families in the region’s frontline communities are to receive fuel briquettes. The aid is distributed based on a vulnerability assessment to those most in need.
“Many people are having a very hard time right now: damaged homes, constant power outages due to shelling, low income. Fuel briquettes help families not only heat their homes but also save on firewood or gas, allowing them to focus on other important needs. We organized the aid distribution in two stages: the first covers the winter-spring period, and the second is planned for the fall. This phased approach will help families prepare in advance for the next heating season,” says Nina Cherniavska.
The Lifesaving: Protection, Shelter, and WASH for War-Affected Regions project is being implemented by the Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services” in partnership with the charitable organization Malteser International with support from Aktion Deutschland Hilft.