We first met Sofiya during the repair of her windows, a project made possible through the Providing Multi-Sectoral Humanitarian Assistance to Conflict-Affected Populations in Ukraine project. A retired professional athlete, Sofiya is an Olympic champion and a coach. Her positivity and energy were impossible to miss during our conversation — she sang, laughed, and cried. Deeply attached to her city, she proudly calls herself “Aunt Sonia from Kherson” and stayed there even during the occupation.
“Shortly after Kherson was liberated, my private house was hit by a shell that landed in the bedroom. Thankfully, I was outside hanging laundry at the time, which saved me. Later, the house was completely destroyed by flooding after the Kakhovka Dam was blown up. It’s now classified as ‘to be demolished’ in official documents. My husband and I used to keep a beehive there,” Sofiya said with sadness.
After these events, she moved into her daughter’s apartment. But in February 2024, a shell struck the pharmacy beneath their building. The blast shattered the windows in the bedroom and living room. Recalling those days, Sofiya noted that the heating also went out after the strike, prompting many families with children to relocate. They kept warm using electric heaters.
“They gave me plywood to cover the windows, but I longed for light in the apartment, so I just taped them with plastic sheeting instead. I really wanted to repair the windows, but my pension was my only income, so I couldn’t afford it. And then the new windows you gave us were as a New Year’s gift from Santa or Father Frost,” Sofiya shared joyfully. “You’re doing such good work!”
Sofiya expressed her satisfaction with the quality of the repairs, the windows, and her experience with the technicians who worked on her home. “I’m 100% satisfied!” said Aunt Sonia from Kherson.
The repairs to Sofiya’s and her daughter’s home were carried out as part of the Providing Multi-Sectoral Humanitarian Assistance to Conflict-Affected Populations in Ukraine project, implemented by the Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services” in collaboration with the humanitarian organization CARE Ukraine and the Ukraine Response Consortium, with financial support from USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA).