Zaporizhzhia now hosts many IDPs, particularly from the temporarily occupied areas of the region. In order to help displaced persons, district humanitarian hubs are being established in the city. One such hub is the “My Razom” (We Are Together) Assistance Center of Vasylkivskyi District. In October, our regional coordinator Anastasiya Perepelytsia distributed 790 boxes of food there: this was made possible with the assistance of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) supported by the Humanitarian Fund for Ukraine (UHF) within the framework of the Interorganizational Nexus Consortium.
For more information about the center and the humanitarian work it performs for IDPs, we spoke with its coordinator, Iryna Lysenko.
“Our center was opened on July 22. It was created by the Vasylivskyi district administration to provide assistance to IDPs of the temporarily occupied Vasylivskyi district. All its residents who come to Zaporizhzhia can receive humanitarian kits, talk to a therapist, and ask consult lawyers or experts from the Social Protection Department. We are trying to expand our services, so we are establishing a partnership with the local clinic: its representatives come to us every Tuesday and consult people, for example, on singing a declaration with a family doctor.
Representatives of the Pension Fund and the Social Insurance Fund participate in consultations with us as well. This is an incredibly important initiative, as almost 20 thousand residents of the Vasylivskyi district have already registered in Zaporizhzhia. People need to know their rights and opportunities, to receive social benefits.”
To date, we have issued 9,000 food packages. It is very convenient when a person comes for help and can immediately solve some of their issues, get advice from a professional.”
Iryna expresses her delight at collaborating with our foundation.
“Usually we receive a small number of packages, so we distribute them in small batches. And thanks to the Stabilization Support Services Foundation, we were able to reach a large number of people. The packages are very smartly designed, containing everything you need for adults and children. Kids were delighted to see sweets since families only receive cereals and canned foods – no sweets at all.”
The Help Center publishes announcements of upcoming distributions of assistance on its Telegram channel. Today it already has 7000 subscribers. Unfortunately, the number of requests often exceeds the capabilities of the humanitarian hub.
“There are a lot of applicants, and it is challenging because people keep coming, often multiple times. Although this is understandable, our resources are not unlimited. We have now decided not to provide assistance to the same family more than twice. On the other hand, mass evacuation from the uncontrolled territories has stopped, even though it used to be about a thousand people passing through Zaporizhzhia from the Vasylivskyi district every day.”
Unfortunately, lately, Ms. Iryna and her fellow volunteers have had to work under shelling. She notes sadly that it is nothing new to her because she had to flee from a war zone and knows what it is like.
“Of course, we are scared, but what can you do? We try to avoid crowds and register the recipients of assistance in advance. No more than 150-200 people come to the distributions, plus there is a shelter nearby, not just a basement, but a bomb shelter.”
We are grateful to Mrs. Iryna for her selfless work. Our Foundation together with partners will continue to provide assistance to people who were affected by Russian aggression and became internally displaced.