Nizhyn is an old city in Chernihiv region that gained fame with the Cossack military traditions. In past centuries, the women of Nizhyn got a rare right to wear hats as they defended their land with weapons alongside men. Today, the national spirit and willingness to unite in difficult times are still alive in the city on the Oster River. Nizhyn stood at the forefront of resisting Russia’s assault on Kyiv and the attempts to expand its attack further into the country. The local community did not stand aside.     

As the full-scale war began, the Nizhyn Community Youth Center was converted into a volunteer center. Here’s our conversation with its director Anzhela Tymchenko, who’s also the head of the board at NGO Laboratory of Youth Initiative.

Author: Olena Nayda

Photo provided by the author

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- Anzhela, what is the story behind a youth space in Nizhyn? How did it all begin?

- Active youth began to come together as I was working as a psychologist at the Nizhyn Center for Children and Youth. In 2018, we registered an NGO. We conducted a survey to understand what the youth’s needs are. People ages 13 to 36 said there was a need to have a youth center where they could come without having to pay. An initiative group appealed to the mayor of Nizhyn Oleksandr Kodola asking to create a community youth center. We received letters of support from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Association of Youth Centers of Ukraine. Our campaign went on for three months. We advocated for a center trying to convince the members of the city council. Finally they voted in favor of our proposal. The community youth center was registered in May 2019.      

 

Anzhela Tymchenko, head of the board at NGO Laboratory of Youth Initiative

 

- The Center is located in an old Greek building in the historic center of Nizhyn. How was the renovation funded?

- We used grant money to set up the center. We also applied for funding offered by the Program “Building Ukraine Together”. We renovated the center as part of the program’s two-week youth camp.     

- As the war began, the center added a new title, a hub. What does it do?   

- In the early days of Russia’s onslaught, together with an NGO we created a volunteer hub based on the youth community center. We redirected the grant money for social action projects provided to the NGO by the British Council and the British Embassy in Ukraine to help the military and affected civilians. We purchased and sent them mats, thermoses, blankets, medicines, hygiene items, stationery, and food. The center began to apply for grants from UNDP and UNICEF. We launched the Spivdiia Hub on March 22.    

- What is the initiative about?

- That’s a joint program of the Office of the President, Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories, charity “Believe in Yourself”, and the program “Mriemo ta Diemo” (We Dream and Act). They partnered to help civilians.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports addressed the center, and we registered the Spivdiia Hub Nizhyn. Humanitarian aid supplies arrive from other regions of Ukraine. Volunteers unload, sort, and pack them. They distribute the supplies to internally displaced persons, families with many children, military, and seniors.

 

Hub’s volunteers after unloading humanitarian cargo

 

- Who do you cooperate with?

- Natalia Safronova whom we worked with in DOBRE Program sent humanitarian aid supplies from Ivano-Frankivsk region. The hub was a transit point for humanitarian aid headed to hromadas of Chernihiv region – Menska, Snovska, Koryukivska, Novhorod-Siverska, Horodnyanska, and Nizhynska.

A few days ago we received supplies from Help Ukraine Center and the central office of Spivdiia program.

- How can people get help in the hub?

- They can apply on the website Spivdiia.org.ua or by calling on the hotline of the Office of the President at 15-45. The application is processed, and the Nizhyn hub would get it within five days. Volunteers form individual packages based on a request. They would contact the applicants and hand out humanitarian packages on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays between 10:00 and 14:00. We printed leaflets explaining the procedure to internally displaced in Nizhyn.      

- Anzhela, is there anything the center does to provide psychological support for the war-affected community?

- We will be soon offering psychological counseling services. A therapist will hold individual and group sessions both in-person and online. The services will be available to both the internally displaced and Nizhyn residents affected by Russia’s attacks on the city.

- How the center’s initiatives are supported financially?

- We received half a million UAH grant from UNICEF to support families with children in need, and UAH 450 thousand from UNDP Ukraine to provide food and hygiene packages to families in need.

- How do you make sure that humanitarian supplies get to those most in need?

- We verify the lists with government agencies for the affairs of families and youth, social protection, and veteran organizations.

Spivdiia Hub runs a database of humanitarian supplies it gets. There is a list of recipients with their personal data and confirmations that they have received the supplies. There can hardly be room for violations or embezzlement.   

 

Managerial team and volunteers of the hub

 

- Do you help only most vulnerable groups?

- Not at all. We help anyone in need. Many people lost their job, home, or family members. Yet they can get a package once in two weeks.

- Anzhela, how do you help seniors who cannot file online applications?

- The hub exchanges data with municipal services, they also send requests from people in need. Sometimes neighbors or acquaintances of people in need would call us. We verify the reports, form relief packs, and send them to recipients. They either collect them themselves or our volunteers bring them the packs. 

- How many people have you helped so far?

- We have received more than 23 tons of humanitarian supplies from elsewhere in Ukraine and abroad. That’s what we recently reported to the Ministry of Youth and Sports. Ten tons we resent to the hromadas. We have been sending the remaining 13 tons to the military and civilians. The hub has provided services for more than 350 civilians and counting. We sometimes have up to one hundred people in one day.

 

Volunteers sort medicines

 

- Who are the volunteers?

- There are 140 men, women, and teenagers willing to help. We use a chat to coordinate the team. These are people ages 14 to 50 and older. Minors have a written permission from their parents.

- How the Nizhyn City Council help the hub?

- They transport humanitarian aid, supply fuel, develop logistical routes, facilitate data exchange between municipal services and volunteer organizations.  

- Where would you get more funds?

- Spivdiia will seek additional grant funds. The hub is open throughout the week and on weekends as there’s a constant influx of those who need help.