A man evacuated from Pokrovsk found shelter in the Caritas-Spes shelter
Since February 2022, more than 14 millions Ukrainians have been forced to leave their homes due to the fighting caused by Russia. Leaving behind one’s familiar life and heading into the unknown is never easy, but when you know there is someone ready to lend a helping hand, it brings hope and faith that the hard times will soon end.
The Caritas-Spes Sloviansk team evacuated Volodymyr from Pokrovsk to a transit center for displaced persons in Pavlohrad. “I had two bags — that was all my belongings. It felt like I was leaving forever, it was hard. I grew up in this house, I thought I would spend my old age in my parents’ home, but it wasn’t meant to be,” recalls Volodymyr, reflecting on his evacuation experience.
He says he didn’t want to leave, but his sister, who lives in Kolomyia, persuaded him. From Pavlohrad, he took an evacuation train to Lviv, and from there, to one of Caritas-Spes’ centers for internally displaced persons. “I rested here for a week, then I said: ‘Well, I need to do something.’ I went to the girls and asked them to give me some work,” he says with a slight smile. In his peaceful life, he worked as a controller at a bus depot that served miners, and at the shelter, he was offered to learn a new profession as a stoker. Local workers taught him everything, and he began to help them. Despite his disability and the significant physical effort required for this work, Volodymyr is always happy to assist and responds to the requests of the center’s staff.
Although our shelters are temporary, with a 30-day stay allowed, we don’t leave people in need to fend for themselves. Volodymyr was granted an extension of his stay at the shelter, and we are now helping him find permanent housing and looking for opportunities for further employment at our center. Volodymyr has inspired us with his desire to adapt to his new life and not give up.
Unfortunately, we can’t reach everyone in need, but even helping one person can change the world and inspire others to do good. And we are sincerely grateful to all of our partners from Caritas Internationalis for the opportunity to help people.
