This is a small town of Makariv, located about 50 km west of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. A middle-class family of 6 people used to live in a comfortable house, which was standing where the empty lot is right now.

The family kept goats, chickens and other farm animals in a barn located behind the house. This was their hobby, because Marina (a speech pathologist) and her husband had busy careers, while their 3 young daughters were attending schools and kindergartens. Marina’s mother was helping to run their improvise farm, make goat cheese, and look after the kids.

The February 24, 2022 invasion brought fierce fighting and many tragedies to Makariv. According to the regional government records, 2245 single family homes were damaged and 585 were completely destroyed by the rocket and artillery fire. Marina’s family home was left in ruins.

Luckily, Marina was able to drive her family to another town before the house was destroyed. Before they evacuated, Marina let the farm animals out into the yard and left some hay and water for them. At the same time, Marina’s husband had joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces to fight the enemy.

A few weeks later, as the Ukrainian army drove the invaders out of the region, Marina brought her family back home. She was heartbroken to see the house in a pile of rubble, but happy to find her beloved goats roaming nearby!

The reality was pretty grim: two women and three young girls had to live in a barn together with their animals without electricity, gas and running water. Not to mention, that it was an early spring in Ukraine, which can be quite chilly!

Fortunately, a group of volunteers (which happened to be film makers from Kyiv) had offered Marina to clear the area where the house used to stand. After a few days of hard manual labor, these TV actors, crew and producers had delivered and installed a temporary housing unit for the family.

The unit is made locally in Ukraine and costs around US$10,000. It has about 200 sq. feet of living space and comes complete with insulated walls, a shower, toilet, A/C and heating unit. It is definitely not a luxurious accommodation, but it has helped Marina and her family to stabilize their life and continue to plan for the future!

Given the scale of destruction in the Makariv region alone, the demand for such temporary housing solutions is tremendous. We are helping to pay for some of these units. Would you like to join us? If so, please click on the Donate link!