October 1: Defenders Day and Remembering The Fallen of Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine – Five hundred and eighty seven days ago, Russia invaded the sovereign nation of Ukraine. Under the cloak of a so-called ‘Special Operation,’ Russia attempted to decapitate Ukraine’s leadership by attacking her capital city of Kyiv.

To date, Ukraine remains steadfast and has successfully stood-up to a barbaric invader. However, it has come at a great cost. Ukraine’s most vulnerable citizens- her children, are disproportionately affected with trauma from this man-made war.

According to UNICEF and the Ukrainian Ministry, over 2.2 million Ukrainian children have been forced to flee their primary residences. Three and a half million do not traditional schools to attend.

Since the start of the war on February 24, 2022, an average of five children have been killed or injured in Ukraine every day. Thousands are injured and disabled. Nearly 300 have outright disappeared.

In addition, an estimated 1.5 million Ukrainians, including over 200,000 children, have been forced to move to Russia and Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine. Tens of thousands of Ukraine’s citizens have perished.

While the Ukraine remains steadfast and has successfully stood-up to a barbaric invader- this would not be fact without the random acts of kindness and support offered by millions of residents around the world.

Recently, the U.S. State Department and the Yale University Humanitarian Research Lab reported compelling evidence that over 6000 children, as young as four months that were living in the occupied areas, have been deported against their will to 43 camps across Russia.

At these Russian filtration-detention camps, Ukrainian youth are “re-educated” and taught to be pro-Russia.

While Ukraine’s children appear resilient, hundreds of thousands are traumatized from the horrors and atrocities that they both witnessed and experienced since the start of this conflict. This form of stress can impact the development of a child’s and young adult’s brain.

If the stress is not addressed immediately, it can take years, if not decades, for children and young adults to process traumatizing events.

During my trips as a humanitarian aid volunteer to both eastern Poland and Ukraine, I have come to appreciate the range of trauma that these young citizens have and are experiencing.

My objectives include delivering comfort toys and enrichment-based play games to as many children as I can find. Some are internally displaced living with their families, while others reside in orphanages.

I find my audience in a mix of transportation hubs, including the lobby’s of bus or train stations, deep in subway stations, at children’s medical clinics, small pensions and hostels, and in dozens of refugee reception centers that often house thousand of displaced individuals.

My duffle bags and single rolling suitcase were filled with stuffed animal toys, chess sets, playing cards and board games. Bright soccer and basketballs, street hockey sticks and plastic pucks, coloring books, stickers and a cornucopia of play date dolls, too.

I have seen first hand that simple gifts that I purchase via a GoFundMe campaign can provide some solace and normalcy to freighted and out of sorts toddlers, youngsters, tweens and teens.

Even their sport’s idols are not competing in their per usual comfort zones. Patriotic Ukrainian professional football teams play in empty stadium, as they fear that a supportive audience would attract a terrorist attack.

October 1, the Day of Defenders of Ukraine or Defenders Day, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy honored the memory of Ukrainian warriors who gave their lives defending the homeland. The Head of State laid flowers to the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen Defenders of Ukraine on Mykhailivska Square in Kyiv.

“It happens that silence can say more than any words. This Sunday, October 1, Ukraine will celebrate the day of its defenders on a new date for the first time. All those who fight for the sake of the state. All those who give strength to Ukraine. All those who gave their lives for Ukraine.”

Many of you have contributed to my humble effort, if not shared sincere words of encouragement. I am so grateful to you all. This experience has changed my life, and together we are incrementally improving the lives of our neighbors, young and old alike.