The Flag We Carry with Us

A flag of hope.
A flag of pride.
A flag of courage.

The colors of the Ukrainian flag are now recognized across the world. They have become a symbol of freedom and the struggle for one’s own future.

There is a lot of love in our flag. And just as much pain. Every single day, people fight to defend its right to fly over our cities and villages – at the cost of their own strength, peace of mind, health and lives.

In its blue and yellow lies our history and memory. The homes we were forced to leave behind. The cities we dream of returning to. The land we continue to defend. The freedom we do not want to lose. And the people who protect it all.

For some, the Ukrainian flag is a symbol of resilience. For others, a memory of home or a symbol of hope that they will return one day.

Today, we would like to share several moving stories about the National Flag of Ukraine. Those stories were told by our colleagues and by people supported by the EAST SOS Charity Foundation. In each of them is a special meaning that, above all, you want to hold on to and protect.

A flag that was saved

The flag that once flew above Lyceum No. 28 “Garant” in Lysychansk has become a true relic for the teachers of the relocated school, which joined the “School Up” project by the EAST SOS Charity Foundation.

Back in May 2022, the Garant lyceum was targeted by russian artillery. A fire broke out, partially destroying the school building.

Ivan Shybkov, a French teacher who also led the school’s TV and photo clubs, made his way into the damaged grounds to retrieve the flag hanging above the main entrance.

This was the only item educators managed to save and take with them as a memory of their home lyceum.

Today, Ivan defends his homeland in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He is a chief sergeant in one of the strike unmanned aerial systems units. Also, he has been nominated for “Leader of the Year” in the “Pride of Luhansk Oblast 2026” regional ranking.

Today, the damaged flag is being preserved by the school principal in Dnipro, where the lyceum administration relocated.

A flag of hope for returning home

Natalia Ferliievych, a project assistant in the EAST SOS Reconstruction Department, keeps a flag she purchased in Donetsk Oblast in 2014, when the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) began.

Natalia is from the settlement of Novodonetske in Kramatorsk Raion. Natalia worked as a primary school teacher at the time and regularly brought the flag to school for her homeroom lessons.

When she first evacuated in 2022, she made sure to pack the flag. Later, Natalia and her family returned home.

While sending care packages to a close family member serving on the front lines, Natalia also passed along the flag, asking him and his fellow soldiers to leave their signatures on it.

In 2025, Natalia was forced to flee Donetsk Oblast a second time, bringing the flag along once again. Today, it hangs in her home in Uzhhorod as a symbol of hope for victory and eventual return home.

The photo shows Natalia’s daughter, Yelyzaveta, with the flag in the background.

A Flag from Maidan and a Ribbon Hidden in a Shoe

When leaving her native Luhansk, Yulia Krasilnykova, Reconstruction Program Coordinator for the EAST SOS Charity Foundation, took with her the flag that had been hanging on her balcony. She had bought the blue-and-yellow banner during Euromaidan.

When unrest started to spread across the city and armed separatists began taking over administrative buildings, neighbors asked Yuliia to remove the flag “so they would not get into trouble.”

Yulia took it with her to Kyiv, and a few months later gave it to volunteers who were collecting banners for soldiers on the front line.

Later, while leaving the temporary occupation, Yulia carried out another symbolic item – a blue-and-yellow ribbon.

Trains were no longer running, so she had to travel by car. Space was limited, so Yulia could not take many belongings. She took a few of her childhood photos to preserve at least a fraction of the family archive, along with her son’s clothes. A blue-and-yellow ribbon was attached to one of his jumpsuits – her son had worn it to rallies in the winter.

“Emotionally, that ribbon was very important to me because it went through both the Kyiv and Luhansk Maidans with me and my loved ones. I really wanted to preserve it as a reminder of everything we had to endure, as well as an embodiment of what we continue to fight for – our freedom and independence,” Yulia shares.

During the crossing of russian and separatist checkpoints, she hid the ribbon under the insole of her sneakers.

A Flag That Unites Ukrainians

In February 2022, EAST SOS Communications Manager Anastasiia Mykhailovych travelled to Asia for the first time. While staying there, she wanted to find fellow Ukrainians – because, after all, “the more, the merrier.”

However, on February 24, Ukrainians had to get together for an entirely different reason – to unite against russia’s full-scale invasion and organize rallies together.

At first, they gathered with naive calls for NATO to “close the sky,” and later began holding charity events and collecting donations for the needs of the Ukrainian military.

During one of the initial events, a local fair, a large Ukrainian flag was crafted. A local resident made it free of charge for the Ukrainian community. This banner became a symbol of unity for the people who gathered there. It traveled from event to event, uniting Ukrainians far from home.

Currently, the flag is with Anastasiia’s friend in Thailand. It is brought out from time to time for local events where Ukrainians gather.

The flag we carry holds a personal meaning for each and every one of us. Yet equally for all of us, it is about pride, love, and home.

Happy National Flag Day, Ukraine!