Uan enterprise for everyone but for no one as for them. Disabled people in Ukraine are experiencing their darkest hour: hard to get on and off when living in a wheelchair. Difficult to stay when the shelters are inaccessible.
The story of Kateryna and Liliya
Kateryna’s life was not easy, even before the war. Kateryna is 52 years old and has been taking care of her daughter Liliya day and night since she was born 14 years ago. Because Liliya has severe cerebral palsy and needs around-the-clock care. The escape from Ukraine was their great, terrible adventure.
They had hidden in a basement when the bombing started but conditions were too harsh to care for Liliya’s needs. It was difficult to even get his wheelchair up and down.
So they decided to leave, aided by a woman who is dedicating her life to allow disabled minors in Ukraine and their mothers to leave the country and arrive in Poland, where many associations, such as Action Aid, are committed to protecting women and their children.
Kateryna and Liliya, escaped from the war in Ukraine (photo Action Aid)
Kateryna has four other boys who are all over 20 and have stayed in Ukraine to fight. She is very worried about them, like every Ukrainian mother right now. But she was told that she has to go to get the support that Liliya needs. “I ran away for my daughter’s rehabilitation,” she says. “It’s a 24-hour job and the conditions in Ukraine were very tough. Three times a day we went down to the bunkers to protect ourselves from the bombing. We were afraid of the sirens. It was very difficult to get the wheelchair down the stairs“. Now mom and daughter are headed to a rehabilitation center in Poland. They are safe, and they smile.
Ukraine in a carriage and the strength of Valentina
But for a little girl who finds safety, many others cannot escape: there is talk of about 2 million and 700,000 disabled people in Ukraine, many will not be able to access inaccessible shelters, will die or will be abandoned to luck. “Think about how complicated it is for a person with a disability to just get on a bus,” he says Valentina Tomirotti, President, with disabilities, of the Association “Pepitosa in a carriage“: «For this reason, with my Association I have undertaken to organize one fundraising for the Casa della Misericordia, managed by the Don Gnocchi Foundation“.
The House usually welcomes about 90 minors with disabilities. With the war conflict, they were all evacuated but the staff remained to take care of those in need. “Many trips have been organized to make mothers and children with disabilities flee. But anyone who is no longer a minor and has a disability has been abandoned», Denounces the activist. «Also consider that Ukraine is suspicious of diversity. The orphanages are full of children, and children who have become adults, with disabilities ».
Disabled people in Ukraine who cannot escape
The situation is dramatic, the Don Gnocchi Foundation admits: «The water supplies are few, the shops closed or without supplies, long queues at the pharmacies. Some of the staff of the House, in small numbers, remained at work to give them comfort and assistance. We do not know how we will do for supplies and for the safety of things and people “(below, the video of the House of Charity of the Don Gnocchi Foundation).
For those who cannot leave Ukraine, the supply problem is serious: all aid is at the border, tons and tons of aid blocked in Poland, Romania, Hungary. «I invite those who think they can help out by sending tuna and pasta to think about it», continues Valentina. “For many, many people the only real support possible is in money”.
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