From scars to blessings: a warm home for winter
Nina was born on the steppes of Kherson 68 years ago. War directly entered her home through the roof and the windows in the form of artillery shells and bombing. Nevertheless, leaving her home she’s never left before was never an option for Nina. The front line has moved twice across her native Blahodatne during 2022, leaving plenty of scars, emotional and physical alike. Now Hungarian Interchuch Aid – with funding from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund – renovated Nina’s and 229 other homes in Kherson oblast in an attempt to heal some of the scars left by the war.
Before starting the interview, she inhales deeply – the past two years have not been exactly without difficulties. “We had a beautiful village. It was beyond beautiful! We had everything we needed. It all changed unexpectedly, it was scary. I never thought that the war would come here, even though I saw the news about the war in Donbas, but I didn’t realize how scary it was. And it still is frightening. It was terrifying to see our village empty after the evacuation of people.”
Then came the occupation and with it, countless artillery shells, missiles and warplanes flying over Nina’s head. It was due to a nearby impact that her house sustained significant damage. She takes a quick walk around the house to explain its real extent. “All the windows flew out, you can see my ceiling, the whole house was damaged because the house was left open in the rain.” She had to move to an empty house in Blahodatne temporarily to stay safe and warm.
The shelling and the combat operations have taken their toll on her. “I was shocked! At first, I miraculously escaped by hiding in the corner of the veranda of my house. I was confused, it was an emotional shock, because I did not know where to go, what to do and how to continue living.” Soldiers were surprised to find someone in the damaged house she called home. “I told them while they were not here, I lived perfectly – when they came, I started living like a homeless person, wondering where I could find a place where I can spend the night safely”.
With the end of Russian occupation, Hungarian Interchurch Aid dispatched a team of engineers and humanitarian workers to assess the situation of the buildings in the village. Not all homes could be saved, but Nina’s only needed medium repairs. However, time was of essence, since winter in Ukraine without windows and a leaking roof poses serious risks to an elderly woman’s health. With the help HIA’s technicians and her neighbours, Nina was able to change the windows and repair the damages from the shelling just in time before winter set in.
The help she received from Hungarian Interchurch Aid proved to be crucial. “I don’t know how I would have survived the winter if I hadn’t had windows installed, because before that only simple sheets of plastic covered my windows. But now I have a stove, and the windows keep the warm in. For this I am very grateful! Now I don’t fear the winter” – explains Nina with a grandmotherly smile. “Please come visit me on my birthday. I’ll make baked goose with apples and potatoes”.
Gone are the days when she had to worry about having a place to live that is safe and dry. “I am not afraid to be in my house now. The only thing I’m still afraid of is the sound of airplanes and flying missiles over the roof. Despite everything, I feel good in my house. It’s where I’ve lived forever, it is where I want to live until I die. I did not want to leave. The name of this village is Blahodatne (“blessed”), and thanks to you, I can stay in my home, warm and blessed!”
