Help for children affected by the war

As a result of the war in Ukraine, thousands of children witnessed psycho-traumatic events, suffered physical and moral injuries, and were forced to flee with their parents to relatively safe cities and villages in order to survive. Many such children are now among us, most of them have lost their homes, friends, favorite things and toys... And some have lost the most precious thing – their relatives. Terrible and not at all children's tests and problems fell on their little lives. Many of these children integrate and socialize in our cities, find friends and activities to their liking in their new environment, learning to live anew and recover from what they experienced.

It is wonderful that a significant number of such children begin to attend local art studios, because through art, in particular folk choreography, they rehabilitate psychologically and physically much faster, adopt local customs, join social life, and find new friends. All together causes a healing effect on their psyche, body and consciousness. In such an environment, children affected by the consequences of war recover much faster and better from the horrors experienced, stabilize mentally and develop physically. This is extremely important for all of us, because these children are the future of our country and our nation.

The head of one of the choreographic studios of Ukrainian folk dance approached us with this request – to help these children, as well as children from very poor families, to fully engage, helping them acquire the necessary equipment for classes and further performances on an equal footing with other children. The teachers of the studio work with such children for free, but it is absolutely necessary to purchase clothes for full classes and performances. It is planned to purchase training and stage clothes for 24 children participating in the Choreographic Studio in Khmelnytskyi.

Thanks to the presence of appropriate clothes, these children will feel complete, will be able to work and perform together with local children from ordinary families, socialize, develop, psychologically rehabilitate, and also learn through folk dance and promote Ukrainian culture, which, in turn, will form a new generation of patriotic young people who know and appreciate their roots and their own ethnicity and identity as a nation and a people.