Volunteering is a way to save yourself
Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, the volume of work of Caritas-Spes Ukraine centres has increased thousands of times. The National Office has implemented a strategy to establish humanitarian hubs across the country to provide communities with food, hygiene products and other essential goods.
One of the more impactful activities of the organisation was the Emergency Appeal project, which attracted funding from 25 international donors and provided the largest amount of humanitarian aid from Caritas-Spes since the first days of the active war. Shelters were set up to receive refugees from different regions of the country, children's spaces were created, and systematic psychological assistance was provided.
With support from donors from different countries growing daily, Caritas-Spes Ukraine has been rapidly expanding both the geography of its activities and the range of assistance, responding to the needs of the affected citizens.
This year, it was decided to pay special attention to providing hot meals to those in need. With partial or full support from the Emergency Appeal Project, 7 Soup Kitchens of the Religious Mission continue to operate in Lviv, Zhytomyr, Berehove, Mukachevo, Solotvynia (Kobyletska Polyana, Sorochyy Brid), Vynohradiv, and Tyachiv.
Tyachiv, July 2023
It all begins with the call of the heart
"For the most part, our soup kitchens have been established for quite some time. The history of our kitchen in Mukachevo is a vivid example of how they were formed," says Ference Feher, director of Caritas-Spes in the Diocese of Mukachevo, "It literally started with bread and butter. Several concerned parishioners wanted to support parishioners in difficult life situations: lonely elderly people, people with disabilities, and those in very difficult financial situations. We organised a one-time activity when we distributed simple sandwiches to these people from the parish at the home of one of our parishioners. And for those who could not get there, we organised a bike delivery. In a short period of time, similar campaigns were organised, but the sandwich contents became more substantial and more nutritious. The next step was a proposal from the parishioners to prepare and distribute something more substantial, such as soup.
Thus, in 2002, the first soup kitchen was opened in Mukachevo. From the beginning, it operated on a volunteer basis. The initiative was announced in church and a team of 20 volunteers was formed. Most of them were retired women. They split into groups of three or four people and created a schedule according to which each group prepared meals once a week for the neediest.
"For many years, the social kitchen has been feeding a different number of people every day, on average, from 50 to 80. And these were not only parishioners. People in difficult situations gradually learned about our work and came to us asking for help, and we provided it. Today, the social kitchen in Mukachevo feeds 55 beneficiaries daily. Similarly, we opened social kitchens in Berehove, Vynogradiv and other towns."
Today, 14 social kitchens operate in the Mukachevo Diocese, providing hot meals to 1,057 beneficiaries. And each of them has its own unique history, reasons for its establishment and peculiarities. The newest social kitchen in the region was established during the war in the village of Vylok, and the oldest has been operating in Tyachiv since 1993. The largest one is in Vynohradiv, where 180 beneficiaries are served daily, but in winter this number increases to 210.
Berehove, July 2023
Volunteering as resistance in action
"War has become a new reality for all of us. This ultimatum threat has united people in the desire to protect their homes, cities, and country, as well as to help their fellow citizens," says fr. Vitaliy Uminsky, director of Caritas-Spes in the Diocese of Kyiv and Zhytomyr. "We have been working since 2012, and before the war we were a small team that had the opportunity to systematically care for multi-child families, various orphanages and institutions.
But from the first day of the invasion, our work and our team began to grow tremendously. On the one hand, it was a testament to the scale of the disaster and the number of people who were suffering. On the other hand, it showed the highest level of concern of both the world, which actively sent us humanitarian aid, and local residents, who spared no effort and time to join our work on a volunteer basis."
According to Father Vitaliy Uminsky, almost 100,000 people left Zhytomyr, a population of 300,000, at the beginning of the war. Assisting in the evacuation became one of the primary tasks of the centre, as well as the set-up of humanitarian centres in different parts of the city to help the residents with food and hygiene items. An immediate problem was the seniors abandoned in their apartments and in urgent need of medicines, food and care. The next step was to take care of various institutions that also needed help and attention. These included patients of mental institutions, orphans, and residents of children's boarding schools.
"Caritas-Spes is an endless source of actions that you can implement without limit," says Svitlana Sanarska, a volunteer who has been working in the Zhytomyr centre since 2016, "You seem to work on some projects within the framework of the outlined tasks, doing your part. But there is always an option to do more than is expected.
At the beginning of the war, one psychologist, also a volunteer, said that volunteering is vital for those involved. This is what a person needs to do, in fact, it is the most effective way to protect our mentality and our lives from the horrors of war. And as a result, our state as well. Perhaps that's the reason why so many people who are genuinely not indifferent and eager to help and support us have joined to our once small team since the war."
Soup kitchens: a circle of care and support
As of 1 September 2023, the Emergency Appeal Project has provided 38,300 hot meals. This means that 890 unique beneficiaries, most of whom need systematic and long-term aid in the provision of hot meals, have found reliable support in their most difficult times.
Berehove, July 2023
"Today, the main problem is the dramatic impoverishment of citizens as a consequence of the war," says fr. Vitaliy, "Many people have lost their homes, jobs, and stable income. This poverty has affected not only IDPs, but also local residents. Expectedly, such categories of citizens as multi-child families, the elderly and the people with disabilities became particularly vulnerable in the new conditions.
We, Caritas-Spes of the Diocese of Kyiv and Zhytomyr, are implementing almost all activities under the Emergency Appeal project. This includes the distribution of humanitarian aid in the form of food and hygiene kits, the Medical Voucher Programme, and the preparation of children from affected families for school, etc.
But our favourite activity is the Soup Kitchen. It feeds more than 500 people daily. These are primarily people with IDP status, people with special needs, single elderly low-income people and the homeless.
Zhytomyr, September 2023
Its special advantage is the delivery of hot lunches in the lunchbox format. We refused to use the canteen format for several reasons. The first one is really a safety issue: air alerts in Zhytomyr are not so frequent, but this is not a game, we cannot neglect safety issues.
The second, no less important issue is psychological comfort. Not every person easily accepts the fact that they have turned from a completely self-sufficient person into one who needs help, especially food. That is why distributing lunch boxes is the best solution to support our beneficiaries' self-esteem."
Another example of the approach to establishing soup kitchens is the experience of the Mukachevo Diocese. Here, too, the usual working hours are from Monday to Friday. However, there are exceptions, for example, in Chop and Berehove, hot meals are provided to beneficiaries 3 times a week, but beneficiaries receive a double portion at once. That is, they are provided with food for 6 days. But the soup kitchen team in Vynogradiv, which works according to a regular schedule, gives its beneficiaries a triple portion every Friday to provide them with food for Friday-Sunday inclusively.
Berehove, July 2023
"I think that the story of our smallest soup kitchen in Kobyletska Polyana deserves special attention," says Ferens Feger, director of Caritas-Spes in the Mukachevo diocese, "It feeds one adult and 20 street children. Some of these children are orphans living with grandmothers who are unable to take care of them properly, and some have parents who have gone abroad. I would also like to note that there are also simply neglected children whose parents abuse alcohol. Their situations are different, but the sad fact is that these children have the opportunity to eat properly only thanks to our kitchen.
About 15 years ago, we started opening social kitchens aimed at supporting Roma, especially children. However, in this work, we went a little further than just providing hot meals. And our project in Vyshkiv became our first successful experience. To encourage children from these communities to attend school, we started providing them with lunches in the school canteen. Here, children study in two shifts, and we have oriented ourselves so that lunch is provided just in the interim. Thanks to this, we can feed up to 60 children at a time, who attend classes and study at school at the same time.
This system has been operating in Vyshkiv for almost 20 years. We have transferred this experience to other communities, so we have five soup kitchens that provide meals for Roma children. For us, it is an important emotional relief, because we know that here they eat properly at least once a day and also attend school.
Berehove, July 2023
Since the beginning of the war, the region received IDPs. And we used the same structure to provide food for the neediest people who were evicted from their homes by the war. Today, 125-135 such beneficiaries are fed in our kitchens every day. Of course, last year this number was higher. However, some left, some were back on their feet. But there is still a certain number who need such support, and we provide it.
I have to say, we are very happy to receive help from the Emergency Appeal project. How do soup kitchens work? Of course, with the help of donations and funds from our benefactor partners. Accordingly, we cook with the funds we have, trying to always provide high-quality and nutritious food for the beneficiaries.
However, the vast majority of kitchens have been in operation for more than 10-15 years, or even more. Accordingly, from time to time, the issue of updating equipment arises. And thanks to the support of the Emergency Appeal Project, which provides ongoing funding for meals in Berehove, Mukachevo, Solotvyno (this includes Kobyletska Polyana), Vynohradiv and Tyachiv, we are able to free up some funds for the gradual upgrade of equipment. This will allow our soup kitchens to continue to operate properly."
There is another story, about Caritas-Spes Soup Kitchen is in Lviv, it has been operating since 2015. Today, more than 100 people a day can receive hot meals here. Of this number, 60 meals are prepared with the financial support of the Emergency Appeal project. Just like in Zhytomyr, the kitchen operates solely in the format of lunch boxes.
Lviv, July 2023
"Since the pandemic, and now in times of war, many people have found themselves in a difficult financial situation," says Marie Vdovych, local programme manager of Caritas-Spes in the Archdiocese of Lviv. "People who come to us for food are very grateful for this support, as they usually cannot afford to buy an extra piece of bread, but here they get a whole nutritious and tasty meal.
Many come every day, some come twice a week, and there are those who literally come at the smell of food. We not only know most of them by name, but also know their life stories and visiting habits. The reality is that a significant proportion of our beneficiaries are lonely elderly people who are in great need of companionship. There is also a large proportion of single mothers, the disabled and the homeless. We are very worried when one of our beneficiaries does not come to us for a long time. In such cases, we begin to call and go to their homes to check if they are okay and need help. Unfortunately, there have been cases when lonely elderly people have died, and it went unnoticed by none of their neighbours or friends."
Lviv, July 2023
