At first glance, this pair of beautiful, young people in the picture is no different from other Ukrainian newlyweds. As happy and in love as it should be on this solemn day. However, this is only at first glance, in fact, there were so many trials that fell to their lot, which would not be enough for one lifetime. From the first days of the large-scale invasion, 27-year-old Ivan Soroka, a member of the 72nd mechanized brigade named after the Black Zaporozhets, defended Kyiv, going through the hell of battles for the village of Moschun. It was there in close combat that Ivan saved the lives of four of his comrades by opening fire to overtake them.

But even in the midst of ruin, pain and suffering, love finds people and fills their hearts. This is what happened to our hero.

During the defense of the Kyiv region, in the spring of 2022, he met Vlada and their love blossomed rapidly against the background of the war. Before the summer rotation in Donetsk region, he proposed to Vlada and she agreed to become his wife

Then there was Bakhmut and a serious injury in August last year. “I immediately lost my sight, I was thrown back by the blast wave. I felt that I was dying, – recalls Ivan Soroka. – I lay there for about two minutes. Then I realized that no, no one is letting me there.” He is convinced that it was his beloved Vlada who helped him survive then. She is always near. This charming couple has already attended our rehabilitation camp “Life after the war” twice. Ivan, who has lost his sight, has an insane motivation to return to an active, fulfilling life as much as possible and to help others in this. And on September 9, the newlyweds got married, inspiring the whole country with their love story.

At this time, many volunteers, public associations and charitable organizations are engaged in or plan to engage in the social rehabilitation of veterans, including those who have lost their sight. This is very good, but it is extremely important that we join our efforts and not duplicate each other’s activities or compete with each other, but complement and help each other. Cooperation will allow rational use of time, own resources and donor assistance. After all, we have one goal – to return veterans and veterans who lost their sight in the war to an active, fulfilling life as soon as possible. This is a complex and painstaking work that requires a systematic approach and must cover all areas of life of the people we seek to help. It is not limited to providing basic spatial orientation skills, cane use, mobile applications, and home organization. Equally important is professional orientation, education, creating jobs for the blind or creating conditions for sports or art, creating an accessible environment in communities, both physical and psychological, etc.

That is why, on August 16 in Kyiv at Ukrinform, Oleksandro Tereshchenko labdaros ir paramos fondas,  ALL-UKRAINIAN LEAGUE OF BLIND AND PARTIALLY SIGHTED PEOPLE ORGANIZATIONS «CONTEMPORARY VIEW», The National A»ssembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine and CHARITY FOUNDATION «LET’S SEE THE VICTORY  concluded Memorandum on cooperation in the direction of social rehabilitation of veterans who lost their sight while defending Ukraine.

This is an open document that can be joined by organizations that have a common goal with us and share our values.

“Life after the war must go on” and be full and happy no matter what.

Our second rehabilitation collection for veterans who lost their sight defending Ukraine as part of the “Life after the War” project has ended.
Two weeks of intensive activities with orientation in space, moving with a cane and a navigation application, setting up a household and cooking, using a computer and mobile applications for the blind, with the obligatory consolidation of the acquired skills in the conditions of the city. Family members who accompany blind veterans also received knowledge about escort rules and psychological support. With this in mind, we consciously formed a group of beginners and students who had already taken part in our first rehabilitation course and needed to consolidate the acquired skills. This approach met our expectations and increased the effectiveness of classes. I personally visited the rehabilitation site to hear the impressions of the project participants themselves and to make sure that we are on the right track.
I would like to express my admiration for the team of coaches from GS “Modern View”, project partners, who selflessly transferred their knowledge and experience and cheered for the result.
I sincerely thank everyone who contributed to the rehabilitation of veterans who lost their star, protecting Ukraine and the entire civilized world. I would like to note that the main sponsors of the project were UAB “MED GRUPE” (Lithuania) and Partnerschaftsaktion Ost im Bistum Magdeburg geguntürgen (Germany), thanks to which we continue to prove that #Life_after_war_must_continue.
We have already started the formation of the next group of veterans for the rehabilitation camp and are planning trips of trainers to the place of residence of the project participants to help adjust their lives and work out the necessary travel routes. Our goal is to return each project participant to an active, maximally independent life.

On May 21, I had the opportunity to announce the name of the laureate of the National Film Award of Lithuania – “Silver Crane” of 2023, in the category of full-length documentary film. It was a great honor for me, a Ukrainian soldier, to announce the film “Mariupol 2” directed by Mantas Kvedaravicius. Unfortunately, the author of the film could not witness the triumph of his film. A talented director in the prime of his life was killed by Russian scum in surrounded Mariupol, at the beginning of April 2022. But they failed to kill the footage. Thanks to the director’s associates, the world saw the life of the Ukrainian city, which was methodically destroyed by the Rashists every day. “You know what was absolutely incredible in Mariupol? No one was afraid of death, even though they thought they were. Death was here, and everyone wanted to die meaningfully. People helped each other even at the risk of their lives. They smoked outside and chatted even as the bombs fell. Money no longer existed because life had become too short to think about it. Everyone was content with what they had, becoming the best version of themselves; there was no past, no future, condemnation, ambiguity! It was heaven in hell” – the author’s words are given in the annotation to the tape. This is not just a movie, it is the documented crimes of Russia against humanity, which they are trying hard to hide.