How EAST SOS Supported Evacuees from February to April 2026
Between February and April 2026, the EAST SOS team, with financial support from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund (UHF), continued helping residents of frontline hromadas (communities) forced to leave their homes due to the war.
One of the evacuees was 89-year-old Nadiia from Druzhkivka. Born in the village of Peremoha, Donetsk Oblast, she grew up in a large family of workers, together with three brothers and two sisters. From a young age, she learned the value of hard work and responsibility, starting to work after seventh grade, and later moved to Druzhkivka.
Nadiia began working as a plasterer at the age of 17, dedicating over 50 years of her life to this demanding profession. She built and restored homes, bringing comfort to them while caring for her own family. Together with her husband, she raised two children. Tragically, her son passed away. Her daughter, meanwhile, was passionate about volleyball and achieved great success in this sport.
Before the war, Nadiia and her daughter lived together and supported one another. But the war forced them to leave their home.
The EAST SOS team helped Nadiia evacuate to Dnipro and find temporary, and eventually permanent, housing. Today, she and her daughter live together in a residential (inpatient) care home in Poltava Oblast.
“I started working with Nadiia when she arrived at the Pavlohrad transit center in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. We went through all the necessary steps together: reissuing her bank card, identification at the Pension Fund, and obtaining an IDP certificate. We visited her daughter in the hospital, because it was important for Nadiia to stay close. We even bought a robe and slippers to make her stay at the collective site more comfortable. Simple care helps a person feel supported and safe,” shared EAST SOS social worker Oksana Akchebash.
A new chapter of life in a safer place lies ahead for Nadiia and her daughter.
Over the three months of the project, EAST SOS evacuation teams helped 1,282 people from Donetsk Oblast move to safer regions, including those from Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, and other settlements under constant shellings.
1,137 people received logistical support, including temporary housing, assistance in transit centers, transfers to new homes, and support in accessing medical and social services.
Social workers provided 1,251 consultations, psychologists assisted 309 people, and case managers supported 328 individuals facing difficult life circumstances. EAST SOS lawyers provided 2,398 consultations on restoring lost documents and obtaining compensation for damaged or destroyed property.
Those activities are carried out under the project Integrated Comprehensive Support and Protection for Vulnerable Evacuees, implemented by EAST SOS with funding from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund (UHF).
Follow the link to read how the EAST SOS team supported the affected residents of Dnipro following the russian shelling.
