Serhiy Tanchynets, the frontman of the famous Ukrainian band BEZ OBMEZHEN, became the first ambassador of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation.
“Without exaggeration, I am proud to be able to help veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war, our defenders. Supporting those who currently protect our lives and drive the enemy from the Motherland is an honor, necessity and respect,” Serhiy Tanchynets said.
“BEZ OBMEZHEN” band are reliable friends, comrades and supporters for Ukrainian soldiers. They actively help the Ukrainian Armed Forces, regularly give acoustic concerts for soldiers and learn about their needs.
“You can talk about the problems and needs of veterans in different ways. Uniting Ukrainian opinion leaders into a powerful ambassadorial community that will support veterans is an effective step,” Natalya Kalmykova, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation said.
The Ukrainian Veterans Foundation together with the ambassadors are planning a number of joint events aimed at expanding the opportunities for defenders at the state and local levels.
The Ukrainian Veteran Foundation of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs held two charity events in the United States of America. The events were dedicated to the anniversary of russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
“Currently, we receive support at all levels, and this is very important for us. We are proud that we can organize projects that attract not only funds, but also citizens of other countries. After all, the war for senses with Russia is not going anywhere. We have to beat them in this sphere too. The next event in Washington DC (USA) with the participation of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation is scheduled for April 20,” Minister of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine Yulia Laputina said.
Dmytro “Orest” Kozatskyi, Consul General of Ukraine in San Francisco Dmytro Kushneruk and Executive Director of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation Nataliya Kalmykova participated in the events. The events took place in Miami and Los Angeles. Organizers of charitable events have collected funds for projects for children of veterans.
“A year ago, just before the invasion the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation was established. We planned to care about 500 000 veterans, but the invasion happened. Hundred thousands of civilians joined the Armed Forces to defend those they loved. Now we have over 1.2 million of people on active duty and soon they will come back to civil life. And now I want to talk about those who pay the highest price: the children of veterans and the fallen heroes. They are the reason for our meeting today. We collect funds for their support. Our world of little heroes. Our future. Our pride,” Executive Director of the Ukrainian Veterans Fund Nataliya Kalmykova held a speech.
Guests had the opportunity to listen to a concert program, view an exhibition of war artifacts. At the end of the events, silent auctions were held, where commemorative lots were fought for. The greatest excitement among the guests was caused by the photo of Dmytro Kozatskyi from Azovstal. At the auction, the team of Ukrainian Veterans Foundation managed to attract about 500 thousand hryvnias/10 thousand dollars for projects to support children of veterans.
“Almost everyone has lost someone during this time. But we have parents, wives, husbands, brothers and sisters of our fallen comrades who need help to pass this most difficult days and months of their lives. I am sure that among you or your loved ones there are veterans and you, like no one else, understand the importance of supporting veterans and their families, – Dmytro “Orest” Kozatskyi emphasized — Today you can help our Ukrainian families. Good always comes a hundredfold, and with so much help and open hearts, I believe America will have a very happy future.”
It is difficult to live in the border areas of Sumy Oblast. Especially for children. Shelling keeps you in constant danger and tension. It is not shy to talk about rest, study or communication with friends. Children are sitting at home. And when their parents were at war or returned to the front, this is an additional psychological burden.
In order to rehabilitate the children of veterans, to get them out of a psychological stupor, and to bring them joy, the Sumy public organization is preparing a “Brave weekend”.
This will be done by the Organization “Ukrainian Association of Combatants and Volunteers of the ATO in Sumy Oblast”. And the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation will support financially. After all, the team won the #Varto+NGO competition.
“To bring children out of a psychological stupor – we can make a holiday for them with all the necessary elements: psychological rehabilitation using art therapy methods, interesting master classes, an entertainment program and unique gifts made specifically for children of this category”, – organizersexplain the essence of the “Brave Weekend” project .
This event is not just about a holiday. The organization will create and test the mechanism of social support for children of veterans and fallen defenders. They will use art therapy.
After that, they will create theoretical material.
“The manual will be useful in the work of social workers, specialists of cultural institutions, education, extracurricular activities, public activists, volunteers. Effective rehabilitation cases will be collected. Photos, videos from events, as well as feedback from participants will be collected and systematized. In addition, professionals will be involved to form advices”, – say the organizers.
“Brave weekend” will be held in three cities of the Sumy region in an open-air format. We wish the organizers success and are glad to be able to support them.
In the near future, we will launch a new program to support initiatives for veterans and their families. So, public organizations and associations, keep your finger on the pulse.
6.2% of surveyed veterans now have their own business, and 63.6% want to open their own business. However, 15.1% said that they do not want to engage in entrepreneurial activity, and another 15.1% say that they prefer to be employees.
This is evidenced by the data of the survey conducted by the Ukrainian Veterans Fund among veterans as part of the study “Portrait of a veteran. Block: “Needs of veterans“.
“The results of the online survey showed that there is a problem with finding a job for veterans, but it is not the gravest. However, the figure of 63.6% of respondents that said that they want to develop their own business is a shows the potential for the development of veteran entrepreneurial initiatives. The Ukrainian Veterans Foundation implements programs for financing veteran businesses. As of today, 190 veteran business initiatives have received micro- and macro-financing. New financial support programs for veteran entrepreneurs will be launched in April. The Fund also analyzes the spheres of activity and problems of the veteran business in order to implement appropriate changes. After all, we work for veterans and all our activities are about veterans. That is why we apply a lot of analytics to understand the needs of veterans,” says Ruslana Velychko-Trifonyuk, the first deputy executive director of the Foundation.
Apart from theur plans for the future, veterans were also asked what challenges they are currently facing.
“This is the second online survey in the Portrait of a Veteran research series (the previous one was in August 2022), where we study issues two-dimensionally and observe changes: sociology shows the mood of society, and the veteran survey shows the expectations, aspirations and structure of the veteran community. We build our programs on the basis of this data, and also provide information to create effective decisions regarding veterans’ policy both in the short term and in strategic planning,” says Nataliya Kalmikova, the executive director of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation.
The survey was conducted from February 6 to 12, 2023 and included the collection of primary data on the needs of current and future veterans and veterans. The tool is an anonymous online survey, so no choice requirements were set. 1247 respondents over the age of 18 took part in the survey.
The Ukrainian Veterans Foundation held a series of events in the United States of America – on February 25, a charity event “UADAY” was held in Miami, the purpose of which was to honor the Ukrainian Day of Resistance, which has been going on for over a year now.
The guests of the event had the opportunity to support the families of veterans and children of the fallen defenders at the silent auction held that evening.
The invited guests perceived the heroism of Ukrainians not only in words, but also through the exhibition of objects from the homes of residents of front-line and de-occupied settlements destroyed by the Russian invasion.
Nataliya Kalmykova, The Executive Director of the UVF, took part in the event:
“A year ago, the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation was founded. In our realities, we need to ensure that each of the 1.2 million veterans and their families will have access to the services and opportunities they need,” she emphasized.
Veteran and the defender of Azovstal Dmytro “Orest” Kozatsky, released from captivity, was a special guest of the event:
“A year of full-scale offensive has passed. During this year, I visited the USA, Italy, Germany, as well as in Mariupol surrounded by Russian troops, in the Olenivka filtration camp, and in the prison of temporarily occupied Donetsk. Having passed this difficult path, I continue to move forward, and now I am in front of you to remind you of all the horrors of the war in Ukraine, the courage of the Ukrainian military, who, regardless of everything, continue to fight… Almost every Ukrainian has lost someone during this time, but we have not lost our desire to win. Almost everyone has a contact in their phone that no longer answers. However, we are left with wives, husbands, brothers and sisters of our fallen comrades, who need help to pass this most difficult stage of their lives.”
A supportive atmosphere at the event was created by a classical music concert, which was held for the guests of the charity evening by Kevin Kenner, Kostya Lukyniuk, Oleksandr Ivanchenko, Oleksiy Ivanchenko, Dmytro Hnativ, Svitlana Pavlova, and Maksym Pavlov. A military violinist with the call sign “Moisey” also joined the video message from the front.
Partner and co-organizer of the event in Miami: Rotary District 6990
You can support Ukrainian veterans by following the link.
Veteran Oleksandr Sorokovy is already dreaming of the time of active recovery of Ukraine and is getting closer to Victory. When the country is rebuilding, Oleksandr will be most useful. He has long been engaged in thermal modernization – a complex of works that reduce energy consumption by the population. This is both insulation and energy modernization in construction.
The idea of a construction business came from Oleksandr’s older brother, Vitaly, who is also a participant in the hostilities.
“He invited me to his place. I started my journey as a plasterer and slowly moved along. It was necessary to go through all the stages in order to understand the essence of construction work. And currently I am already one of the founders of the company,” the veteran tells us.
Having combat experience since 2018, the veteran encountered a full-scale war in his native Poltava region. Oleksandr recalls that by February 24, the Poltava Spetsbud enterprise had many plans:
“We worked a lot, had a development prospects. We also engaged in the construction and production of facade decorations, because we have the equipment for this. The works were promising, but a full-scale war changed everything.”
At first, Oleksandr left the business and enrolled in the military service: he was ready to defend his native region.
“We, as people with military experience, began to organize local residents, roadblocks. Then I transferred to the Armed Forces, because even though we were ready for possible military operations in Poltava Region, everything was calm there, so we had to go where the enemy was crawling,” Oleksandr recalls.
In the summer, the veteran stood in defense of Bakhmut, and now, together with his brothers from the “Odin” unit, they are carrying out combat missions in the Chernihiv region.
The construction business did not stop at this time, but for further development it required decisive actions and financing. The Ukrainian Veterans Foundation helped Oleksandr and his business partners in this.
“In the fall, my acquaintance, a veteran, called and told me about the Varto 2.0 competition of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation. We talked with all the founders and decided to participate. And we won! With the winnings, we have already purchased hanging cradles and are still planning to purchase certain equipment that will help to carry out work on thermal modernization of buildings and repair of roofs,” Oleksandr explains.
According to the veteran, one of the most important principles of the work of their construction business is to give the participants of hostilities, the defenders of Ukraine, the opportunity to work:
“People have to work and provide for their families. There are guys, participants in hostilities, who for one reason or another cannot be in the Armed Forces now, they will work for us. We are waiting for the season. For builders, it’s spring.”
As you can see, the victory in the project competition #Varto 2.0 gave Oleksandr the opportunity to purchase new equipment ➜ business continues to develop even in the conditions of war ➜ veterans will be able to work and provide for their families.
Now the most important thing for a veteran is to quickly recieve the Victory of the country and return to construction:
“I miss working at the company. But whatever you do, now there is a more important job – the defense of my country.”
Relatives of the fallen defenders can receive one-time monetary assistance in the amount of 15,000,000 hryvnias – this applies to those soldiers who died during the defense measures of the country after a full-scale invasion.
Who is eligible to receive funds? The list of persons is described in Article 16-1 of the Law of Ukraine “On Social and Legal Protection of Servicemen and Their Family Members”, except:
citizens of the Russian Federation or the Republic of Belarus and persons permanently residing in the territories of these countries;
persons convicted of treason, collaborative activity, assistance to the aggressor state
Families can receive financial support starting from the day of the death of a serviceman during martial law. The date must appear on the death certificate.
If the soldier died no later than one year after the injury received during martial law, the family also receives a one-time cash benefit.
How to get financial support? What documents need to be prepared? Where to apply?
Our lawyers will advise you during a free consultation – submit an application using the link.
Requests for assistance can be submitted daily and around the clock. Consultations are provided daily on working days from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The project is implemented jointly with the Independent Anti-Corruption Commission – NAKO with the support of the Office of the Special Adviser on Defense of Great Britain.
We have already processed 100 requests for legal consultations – two weeks have passed since the start of the work of the legal team.
They are most interested in the question of obtaining the status of a participant in hostilities.
Most often, current military personnel – future veterans – applied.
“Many people simply do not know who to contact with their questions, which documents are necessary for submission to state bodies on certain issues. We give people answers to their questions and work to ensure that their problems are finally resolved,” say the lawyers of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation.
Leave a request for a free legal consultation at the link.
Requests for assistance can be submitted daily and around the clock. Consultations are provided daily on working days from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The project is implemented jointly with the Independent Anti-Corruption Commission – NAKO – NAKO with the support of the Office of the Special Adviser on Defense of Great Britain.
The Ukrainian Veterans Foundation of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs is conducting a survey among veterans and active military personnel for the second time. Its purpose is to collect and analyze information for further effective work with veterans and future veterans.
“We conduct the survey in order to better predict what needs veterans have now and what challenges may arise in the near future. Analytical research will help develop a road map of projects that will cover as many needs as possible for veterans, their family members, and families of fallen heroes and heroines. It is important for active military personnel to take part in the survey, because they are future veterans. And veteran politicians train for them. Also, the survey will help to use available state resources more effectively, and not scatter them,” says Nataliya Kalmykova, The executive director of the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation.
The survey is anonymous and does not collect personal data of veterans and military personnel. Veterans, representatives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations can take the survey.
The result of the survey will make it possible to create useful programs as efficient as possible, which will help soldiers return from the military to civilian life, as well as adapt to their families.
Survey link:https://forms.gle/6dmAZUMkZjPv3csDA We want remind you that recently the Ukrainian Veteran Foundation of the Ministry of Veterans together with the sociological group Rating conducted a study “The image of a veteran in Ukrainian society”.
Column of Nataliya Kalmykova, Executive Director of the Ministry of Veterans of Ukraine
Life in the context of war is a separate, very special life. A life full of things you wouldn’t wish on anyone: a year of rocket attacks, a year of genocide, a year of loss. But, despite everything, for Ukraine this is also a year of triumphs, victories and battles, which have already gone down in world history.
We, as an institution, lived our first year as a separate small, but confident, stubborn and unconquered life. I remember how they planned a big strategic session with the team regarding the development of the UVF for March 2022. But that (or this?) spring, we all had to volunteer, quickly find equipment for the needs of the Armed Forces, do the impossible. Some people want to get out of the occupied cities. For some – to mobilize to the ranks of the Armed Forces. Someone — to ensure the purchase of the “Bayraktar” complex. Some people had to say goodbye to loved ones and friends. All of us had to go to shelter from time to time and wander in search of electricity.
Under the first rocket attacks, we formed a team of the Foundation – and now they are the best of the best. These are people who were not afraid to take on new things and build an institution from scratch during the war. Our team knows what responsibility and stability are – we stubbornly do our work, each in his own area.
When the Russians went against Ukraine with “scorched earth” tactics on the front line and Ukrainians were forced to relocate to safer regions, we launched the “20 thousand” microfinancing project, in which 122 families were able to receive support. The total amount of payments reached UAH 2.2 million.
During rocket attacks, during blackouts, we announced and held contests. And they did everything possible to be in touch despite the external circumstances. Yes, we conducted the first competitive programs of the “Varto” foundation, “Varto + NGO”, “Varto 2.0”. And 53 veteran enterprises that won have already started to receive financing and implement their business ideas. In total, the winners of competitions for veteran business in 2022 will receive support for 49 million hryvnias.
Eight public associations that create projects for veterans receive support in the total amount of UAH 6.9 million.
This year, we created a crisis support hotline for veterans, their families, as well as families of fallen heroes, because we know and feel how painful war is. Bereavement groups for veterans, their families, and families of fallen heroes began to work separately.
During the year, we conducted three analytical studies of the image of a veteran in order to better understand the needs and requests of our veterans. And there was a lot more during this stormy year.
Where does our stubbornness and desire to work come from?
From them – our pride – Veterans. With the status and the future – those who, at this very moment, hold back the rush of the horde and give them a tough repulse: near Bakhmut and in the Kherson region, in Zaporizhzhia and in the forest near Kreminnaya; those who plan strategic operations and those who hold their platoon stronghold. Those who are partisans in the occupation.
You are the source of our inspiration and the focus of our efforts. You are our responsibility and pride. Despite the fact that we will never be able to fully thank you for protecting our country. You are the memory of those thousands of the best people of this country, who forever joined the ranks of the heavenly army.
We don’t know what 2023 will be like on the battlefield, but we have faith in the Armed Forces. Their resilience is our motivation. We do not know when the day will come that we will call “victory”, “the end of the war”, “the defeat of Russia” or “the collapse of the Kremlin”, but we are getting closer. We understand how many tasks we will have after victory, so we are increasing our capabilities step by step.
I thank the team for participating in the Foundation – each and every one of them.
We thank the Armed Forces that protected Ukraine; those who are fighting for the restoration of territorial integrity and for our values. We thank the veterans, because you are our present and our future.
In the second year of UVF’s life, we continue to build professional muscles. We will be stable – for the sake of the strong. We will continue Empowering the Strongest!
