The Emergency Appeal 2025–2026 project has come to an end
For 12 months, teams from Konotop, Sumy, Kharkiv, Sloviansk, Nikopol, Kamianske, Pavlohrad, Zaporizhzhia, Bilozerka, and Kherson worked with dedication despite truly difficult and dangerous conditions. Together, we were able to reach 6,668 people in need living in frontline areas.
Within the framework of the project, 4,093 people received cash assistance after evacuating from areas under mandatory evacuation, being injured as a result of hostilities, or losing a family member. 100 people with mobility impairments received specialized hygiene kits, while 2,475 people received financial support to pay for utility bills or purchase firewood.
These are only numbers, but behind them stand brave teams ready to travel to remote corners of frontline areas to find those most in need of assistance. They represent open hearts, always ready to listen, support, and bring warmth through their compassionate care. And behind every number are thousands of human stories—each unique, important, and often incredibly difficult. We will share with you some of our teams’ favorite stories from this project, so they remain in our hearts.
«I am grateful to all colleagues who supported people this year by providing assistance. Your work was not only about professional support, but also about humanity: you shook hands, looked into the eyes of every person you met. Through this attitude, you not only provided help, but also gave people hope that a better future is possible. Thank you for dedicating your lives to serving others.
The strongest memory from this project for me remains the registration in Sumy. There I met a woman who had been left completely alone, having lost everything — including her loved ones. I often think about her and sincerely hope that along her path she met people with whom she could feel warmth and find a second home»
“Among those evacuated from Kupiansk was a 74-year-old woman who had spent her entire life working in a hospital and dreamed of quietly spending her old age in her small, beloved apartment. She refused to leave until the very last moment. But war leaves no choice: shelling, the front line, constant danger. Despite losing her home, we did not see despair, but rather an extraordinary strength of spirit. Through her tears, this fragile woman supported us and inspired hope.
We registered her for cash assistance, although the process became more complicated due to the absence of some documents. Still, we managed to help her. Volunteers from the Transit Center temporarily transferred her to a shelter in Kharkiv for people with limited mobility, and later to a refuge in Irpin. This is how Natalia Illivna began a new chapter of her life. Yet her heart remains where her entire life once unfolded. She worries about her hometown and dreams of one day returning”
“I vividly remember the story of a man who left his home with his family on his birthday. They had set the table and even slaughtered a pig to celebrate, but suddenly heavy shelling began. He felt sorry to leave behind his belongings—and the pig that was still there—so despite the shelling he decided to return. But FPV drones connected by fiber- optic cables were circling above the village. Together with his neighbor, they started “hunting” them. Fiber-optic wires were stretched across the yard. They cut one cable—not the right one. They cut a second—still not the right one. Meanwhile, the drone spotted them and started flying straight toward them. Somehow, he managed to cut the third cable, and the drone fell.
But while they were trying to reach the car, there was another strike nearby. His neighbor was wounded yet thank God they both managed to get out alive. I don’t know whether every detail of the story was true, but the man told it as if he were simply describing a routine trip to the store to buy bread”
“Once I evacuated a woman from Druzhkivka, which at that time was already under heavy shelling. Later, I asked her for her documents so I could register her for assistance.
She handed them over very reluctantly, saying she did not believe that anyone would actually help her. However, when she received the MPCA (Multipurpose Cash Assistance), she called me and said:
“You are the only ones I can trust now. I never thought that someone would be able to come and take me out alive, and on top of that help me during the first stage of adapting to a new place”
“Recently, a young woman with two children—one of whom has a disability—came to us for help. This family lived in the Sadivska Territorial Community. Their lives were divided into “before” and “after” in one fateful night.
By a fortunate coincidence, that tragic night the entire family was in Sumy visiting relatives, where they decided to stay overnight. That decision turned out to be life-saving. While they were sleeping in the city, the enemy attacked their village. Their entire street suffered severe damage, and their home became uninhabitable.
Looking at the photos the woman showed us is chilling. It is hard to escape the thought that if the family had stayed at home that night, none of them would have survived.
We did everything possible to help this family quickly: we registered them for cash assistance, provided food supplies, and gave them essential items such as clothing for both children and adults, as well as personal hygiene products”
“A woman came to us who was experiencing evacuation from her home in Donetsk Oblast for the second time. In the spring of 2022, she had already fled in haste, but later decided to return, hoping that everything would end soon. Unfortunately, she spent many long months living under occupation. She learned to distinguish sounds—whether it was an explosion or simply the door of the apartment building closing. When the city was liberated, she began rebuilding her life. She planted new flowers near her home, repaired the windows, and hoped that a new chapter of life was beginning.
But enemy troops began moving closer again. The shelling grew more frequent and louder. The fear returned though not the same panic as in 2022. This time it was different: deeper, more conscious. She knows what occupation means. She knows what it is like to live without a voice, without freedom, without certainty about tomorrow. So she packed her suitcases and left to stay with her daughter in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast”
“It is difficult to single out just one story. It would be more accurate to say that what stayed with me most was an entire hospital ward where the most seriously wounded patients are usually treated.
Every time I came to the surgical department, I saw many amputations, blood, and severely injured bodies. Yet despite all this, the people there remained surprisingly friendly. We met several times even after the on-site registration, and it was always heartwarming to hear that the funds we had transferred to them quickly had been truly helpful. I also remember how they would tell newly arrived wounded patients about us, making our first meetings and conversations much easier”
“During the registration for medicine vouchers, one elderly man left a particular impression. We registered him, but he said someone would help him with the website. The next morning he returned and asked us to assist him with the online registration. That’s when the most complicated part began: his prescription did not match the system requirements, so it had to be rewritten several times. The man became nervous, then irritated, and eventually left, telling us that we were doing everything possible to prevent people from receiving their medicine.
Fortunately, medical staff were nearby. We rewrote the prescription again, checked everything, and waited in case he calmed down and returned. We were disappointed when he didn’t come back that day. But the next day, when the man returned, the doctors and I greeted him with applause—we were all glad he had come back. He walked up to me and said: “All night I was thinking whether to come back or not, what if they deceive me again? Then I remembered your kind blue eyes and realized they could not deceive anyone. So I decided to come.”
“One woman approached us for help. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, she and her husband had been baking bread and pies and preparing food for Ukrainian soldiers on different fronts. They bought all the ingredients with their own money. One day her husband went to the store and came under enemy shelling. As a result of his injuries, doctors had to amputate his leg above the knee.
After the surgery he fell into a deep depression, but his wife stayed by his side and continued to support him. The money they received through the project went toward his rehabilitation. Today, the couple is gradually returning to a normal life and they have continued cooking and feeding our defenders”
“A man came to us asking if he could receive any help. He had just taken his wife to the nearest psychiatric hospital and was himself searching for some hope and support. We began talking with him and learned his truly harrowing story.
They lived in a village in Dnipropetrovsk region, on streets neighboring his son’s family. One night, they were woken by a massive explosion. When they looked out the window, they saw that the neighboring street was on fire. When they ran to their son’s house, they learned that he and his wife had died, but fortunately, three children, the youngest three years old, the oldest eleven, survived.
They took the children into their care. But for the woman, it was an immense shock, and she needed specialized support. We provided them with assistance, but I can hardly imagine how devastating it must be to lose your children before your eyes and suddenly find yourself in a strange city, responsible for three grandchildren”
“One situation stands out the most: when the community center “Proleska” reported an evacuated family — a father, a mother in the final stage of cancer, and two adolescent sons. When we arrived for registration in the village where they had found shelter, the entire team was deeply moved, as it is emotionally very difficult to witness such a situation.
We were incredibly impressed to see how the sons cared for their mother. They constantly asked about her condition, brought her water, answered on her behalf, and carried documents for her. The family was in great need of financial support, and I cannot express how happy I felt to be involved in Caritas’ work and to serve those in need”
And although this Emergency Appeal has come to an end, we continue working to ensure that we do not stop being close to people in need especially in places where the danger is greatest.
