Week of activities in B50 on the occasion of the Volunteer Day

On December 5, Ukraine and the whole world celebrated Volunteer Day. The B50 community, of course, did not miss its professional holiday. On this occasion, we summarized the results of our activities over the past year, conducted a survey among our activists about their motivation and involvement in volunteering, and collected congratulations and wishes. It turned out interesting 😊 You can read it here. We also took part in other cool events and trips. We will tell you how the B50 volunteers spent the ” festive week” below.

Attended events important for the development of the volunteer movement

On December 5, representatives of the B50 administration took part in the 12th Civil Society Development Forum “What Will Give Us Strength”, which brought together about 2,500 participants – civil society activists.

The Civil Society Development Forum is the largest national platform for training, communication and exchange of experience to strengthen charitable and public organizations in Ukraine. It is a meeting place for active and caring people. It is an atmosphere where new ideas are born and trends for the next year are formed.

The 12th forum was dedicated to finding meaning and strength to keep fighting, to run the long marathon of war. Visitors to the event, including representatives of the B50 community, discussed what unites us, gives us the strength to be human and continue to serve our country and our people – to drive reforms, dig up rubble after enemy shelling, provide humanitarian aid, negotiate for airplanes and support IDPs.

On December 6, Ruslan Habdulov attended another event within the framework of the 12th Civil Society Development Forum “What Will Give Us Strength”, which brought together 150 volunteers from different areas of activity. The organizers have planned many opportunities for sharing experiences and networking between volunteers from different fields, practical cases and in-depth discussions from speakers. During the forum, the air raid alert sounded, but the forum attendees are resilient people, so the event continued in a bomb shelter. In the evening, a ceremony honoring volunteers working in particularly difficult conditions was held.

Participated in ” festive volunteer” events

The B50 community joined the photo exhibition organized by the Department of Public Communications of the Kyiv City State Administration on the occasion of the Volunteer Day. The exposition is dedicated to modern activists and their selfless work, because, as Roman Leliuk, Director of the Department, emphasizes, volunteering is the most recognizable brand of Ukraine, it is a reflection and embodiment of our national spirit.

The exposition includes 100 photos of volunteers and volunteer organizations, including photos of B50 activists! The exhibition will be on display at the Glass Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge for a month, so we invite everyone to visit it, find yourself / your colleague / friend / girlfriend)))

Representatives of the B50 community took part in the Volunteer Award 2023 ceremony.

The Volunteer Award is a non-governmental annual award given to ordinary people who do extraordinary things. This year, it was held for the tenth time and was special – the organizers refused to nominate volunteers, because the contribution of both one person and a large charitable foundation is very important and necessary for our Victory.

Became St. Nicholas for children from frontline villages

The B50 volunteers decided to wish St. Nicholas Day to the children of the village of Shandryholove in Donetsk Oblast, 25 km from the front line (we previously delivered books to the local library as part of the P.AGE project). There are currently 18 children living here, including 16 schoolchildren who are unable to go to school (it was destroyed by the russians) and instead study at home with a teacher of Ukrainian language and literature. On the initiative of our coordinator Anastasiia Baranova, B50 activists decided to create a holiday for 18 children from Shandryholove and 5 children from a neighboring village who also attend “home school”: we received letters to St. Nicholas, made a list of gifts, bought them / sponsored their purchase.

In the process, it turned out that we had the resource to please more children. Anastasiia’s friend wanted to join the initiative when the collection was over, so they found other children from the village of Novohryhorivka in Mykolaiv region who were also waiting for St. Nicholas, as well as a volunteer, Yana, who organized gifts for them. The front line passed through Novohryhorivka – for almost 9 months, russian troops were stationed a kilometer away from the village, and as a result, 95% of the village was destroyed. All local children left the village. Those who have now returned received gifts from St.Nicholas/volunteers!

Anastasiia, the initiator of the idea, tells us about her impressions of collecting gifts for children:

I got a lot of pleasure from our initiative to give gifts to children on St. Nicholas Day.
I felt such incredible support, such your involvement that instead of being tired, I have a surge of energy.

I would like to thank you on my own behalf. Thank you for keeping your humanity in this difficult time
and giving others your warmth!

Good afternoon, our dear wizards – the B50 volunteer community! ❤️❤️❤️
We would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your kindness, diligence and indifference! ❤️ We are extremely grateful for your gifts!
We would also like to thank you for your creativity when preparing the packages!
The children got exactly what they wanted! How can you not believe in miracles after that?
We wish you all the best and let the winter fairy tale make your dreams come true! ☃️🎄❄️
Sincerely, the Lutsenko family!

We sincerely thank the organizers of the P.AGE-B50 project, the B50 Volunteer Community, Ruslan Habdulov, Yuliia, Anastasiia, friends from Lithuania, friends from Lithuania, all volunteers and caring people who united around this idea and helped to give the children p v. Shandryholove in the Lyman community of Donetsk Oblast, the St. Nicholas Day. Children are delighted with the gifts !!!! Thank you very much!

We did not forget to volunteer

The holiday week did not cancel the usual important work of the B50 community. So last weekend, B50 activists were busy with their current projects: repairing bomb shelters in Zavorychi Gymnasium, painting the bpmb shelter in Nova Hreblia Gymnasium, and cleaning up the destruction in Moshchun despite the cold.

As part of the P.AGE project, we sent 50 books to the library of Kherson School №39, which is located on the outskirts of the city, 5 km from Antonivskyi Bridge and 10 km from Chornobaivka airfield. Currently, 450 children (including many IDPs) are studying remotely here. The students are active, involved in extracurricular activities and charity. We are confident that the literature delivered as part of the P.AGE project will be interesting and useful to them!

Celebrating their day with fellow volunteers

We get together regularly to help those in need: we clean, repair, paint, buy books, take care of animals. But sometimes we gather to just spend time together – to talk, laugh, eat (not without it))), and recharge our batteries.

So on their day, the B50 volunteers gathered in a bowling alley, had a fun evening, and got a lot of positive energy!

This was the Volunteer Day (week) for the B50 community. Once again, we thank everyone who volunteers with us, who does not spare their strength, time, energy, and warmth for good deeds, who stays by our side in the most difficult times! Thank you, friends! You are the best!