Zaporuka Foundation opens Ukraine's first family home "Dacha" for families of seriously ill children

The Zaporuka Charitable Foundation has opened the first family home in Ukraine, Dacha, where families of seriously ill children can live free of charge near the hospital. The home was created for children undergoing treatment in Kyiv, far from their homes.

The history of Dacha began in 2009. Since then, the Zaporuka Foundation has been providing families with the opportunity to be together during their child's treatment. Previously, Dacha rented premises. Over the many years of the project's existence, until February 24, 2022, 1347 children of all ages from all over the country lived at the old rented Dacha and were treated in a family atmosphere. But the issues of safety, stability and comfort of the wards quickly inspired the foundation's team to create an independent family home. So in 2018, the Zaporuka Foundation and its partners laid the first brick of a large-scale construction of a new independent Dacha, which lasted 5 years. The cost of the house is about 1.5 million euros. The Dacha was built with funds from philanthropists, international organizations and Ukrainian companies.

«Today we finally opened the doors of the house for the "dacha residents". We overcame many challenges along the way - bureaucracy, pandemic, war... But we never stopped, because from day one we believed in the project and understood its value. Our "Dacha is a home created with love for families who are facing difficult life challenges. Family comfort and care are the core values that form the foundation of Dacha. This is exactly what our wards - families - feel "dachshunds"who had previously lived in the house during treatment. A new independent "We have made Dacha even more cozy and comfortable, and most importantly, safe. And all this was made possible thanks to the support of partners who contributed to the creation of "Dacha. We built it together with 65 companies, including conscious Ukrainian businesses and international organizations", - says the founder and president of the charitable foundation "Zaporuka Natalia Onipko.

The new modern house specially built for the Dacha Family Home project is unique in Ukraine. It is not just 950 square meters of housing, but a whole range of support for children and their families during treatment and recovery. The house provides:

• 13 family rooms for a comfortable stay;
• common areas, including kitchen and dining room;
• play and study areas;
• psychologist and physical rehabilitation rooms.

A bomb shelter was also set up on the Dacha's territory to ensure the safety of residents during air attacks.

We were opening the doors of a new house:  

• Natalia Onipko is the founder and president of the Zaporuka Foundation;
• Olena Yefymenko is the director of the National Cancer Institute;
• Volodymyr Zhovnir - Director «Okhmatdyt»;
• Iryna Suslova - Representative of the Ombudsman for Children's Rights;
• Darya Gerasymchuk is an advisor to the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights and Child Rehabilitation.
• representatives of companies that contributed to the creation of the family home

The grand opening was also attended by the Foundation's wards who used to live at the old Dacha during their cancer treatment. These are patients who have already recovered and have experienced the therapeutic effect of Dacha. The Zaporuka Foundation creates the conditions for a child's life to continue despite the difficult treatment. Family comfort, favorite games, new friends with similar experiences who will understand and support you in a difficult moment - all this is about life at Dacha, where new families are about to move in.

You can support family comfort at Dacha by link.