Before the war, Victoria, Anna, her father and her pregnant mother lived in Yalta in the eastern Donetsk region. The four of them were excited to introduce a new member of the family: Ilya was born in May, 2022. Sadly, he will never be able to meet his father, who was killed by a sniper during combat while defending Ukraine. Further tragedy met the family when the children’s grandmother, a military psychologist, perished at Azovstal Iron and Steel Works.

Since losing both their father and grandmother, the family has been living in Enerhodar in the south-central Zaporizhzhia region. Meanwhile, the Russian military robbed them of both their car and their home. The family is in dire need of financial support though, despite all the challenges they have had to overcome, the children’s mother Tatiana says she will do everything possible to make her children feel safe and happy.