On the 24th of February 2022, Russia launched a military offensive into Ukraine, causing civilian casualties and destroying the country’s infrastructure. More than a quarter of the population has been forced to flee their homes. In the first few weeks, more than 4.3 million refugees fled Ukraine, and a second as many were internally displaced. It is the fastest growing refugee crisis since World War II.
We cannot be indifferent to the suffering of our neighbours – we immediately set out to help!
09.03.2022
Ola Hera is an extraordinary person. She has been with us at the Good Factory almost from the very beginning. For the past two weeks, she has been a key member of the team working on the Ukrainian side of the border. We spent long hours together, helping freezing and hungry people fleeing the war. Ola is a Ukrainian national. Although we help people every day, it is she who can make us feel small with her empathy for the needs of others. She grew up 30 kilometres from the Polish-Ukrainian border, just a few kilometres from where we operate every night.
The last time she saw her mother was in June last year. And although she had been in such close proximity for the past two weeks, she was unable to hug her, to spend some time with her, to talk about the fact that everything had suddenly changed in their homeland. They talked on the phone, but could not look into each other’s eyes and see how much fear and uncertainty there was about what awaited their homeland and their family.
Today we provided aid to people waiting for transport to the border at the bus station in Chyrów. We also visited the school in Chyrów, which has been serving as a reception point for refugees from the east of the country for the past two weeks. Finally, we all decided that Ola’s mother was too close not to go and pay her a short visit.
We drove in silence. For Ola, the road home did not feel like the one she knew from her childhood. We passed military checkpoints, ready to resist enemy attack.
We arrived in Dobromil. There were tears and joy. Among all the encounters that we have had in recent days, it was today that we really understood how difficult it is to be separated from your loved ones, when tomorrow becomes so uncertain. Such dramatic events have been taking place here for two weeks. There are hundreds of thousands of such cases. Ola has helped us today to understand how heartrending it is to see people hugging each other, saying goodbye and having absolutely no idea when they will see each other again.
30.01.2024
Smart Charity – Using Technology to Make a Difference The usage and expenses related to new technologies have dominated the business world, and this trend extends to non-profit organizations. What technological solutions are used in non-profit organizations? What are the characteristics of Smart Charity? Smart Charity is a new concept describing a modern and agile […]
12.06.2023
To our questions about estimated casualty numbers, the most common answer is: “A lot! On both sides!”. Exactly how many no one knows, because getting aid to the occupied territories is like asking the aggressor for an open day in his trenches. On the 11th of June, the Russians fired on a boat with civilians […]
02.05.2023
What if this was your neighbourhood? If, between the billowing smoke, you spotted the ruins of the grocery store where you had shopped since you were a child? To which your mother would still send you with a list written in pencil on a piece of paper so you wouldn’t forget anything? Bachmut had more […]
