Locations“Going to class feels like a celebration!”
People with disabilities and those who care for them are finding support in Chernihiv Oblast with help of EU and UNDP
Nina Hladenka and her husband live in Pryluky, Chernihiv Oblast. Now retired, they devote nearly all their time to caring for their daughter, Olena.
Nina has always loved children. She spent half of her life, until she turned 70, working as a kindergarten teacher. Her daughter Olena, now 45, has lived with cerebral palsy since childhood, which was diagnosed just before her first birthday. Since then, Nina has done everything she can to make her daughter’s life as comfortable as possible.
“We travelled to Kyiv and to Yevpatoriia,” Hladenka recalls. “We went through multiple operations. We visited various sanatoriums for rehabilitation. Olena finished 11 years of school, but walking became more difficult, so she didn’t continue her studies.”
During that time, Hladenka looked for support from other mothers who shared her experience. This led to the creation of a small community of women who became friends and decided to start their own non-governmental organization to help others.
“As our children grew up, we founded an organization for young people with disabilities called ‘Phoenix,’” says Hladenka. “That was back in 1993, when no one was really thinking about people with such challenges. And here we are, still working to this day. We don’t have specialists – it’s a support group where we talk and share advice.”
Recently, as part of the flagship “EU4Recovery – Empowering Communities in Ukraine” partnership between UNDP and the EU, a Social Adaptation Space was opened at the Territorial Centre for Social Services in Pryluky. The centre has become essential for local families with relatives who have disabilities. It hosts events, celebrations, recreational activities, and provides opportunities to learn new skills. Nina and her daughter are regular visitors.
At the centre, we learn to use computers,” Hladenka says. “They even installed new ovens, so my daughter and I baked apples there. When we go to class, it feels like a celebration!”
Hladenka says that for her daughter, every visit is a special event. It gives her a chance to socialize and spend time in a welcoming environment.
“We love her dearly – she is our life,” says Hladenka. “We take her everywhere and do different exercises to support her development. Everyone in our family knows that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are ‘our’ days – no one should disturb us because we’re taking Olena to the Social Adaptation Space. We do our best to make sure she doesn’t just sit at home. But it’s getting harder as we’re getting older every day.”
Nina’s older daughter has lived abroad for many years. She got married, started a family, and now has grandchildren of her own.
“They’re all over there, and we’re here,” Hladenka says. “They keep inviting us: ‘Come, everything you need is here.’ They sent me a video of a bus driver stopping at a station where a woman in a wheelchair was waiting. He got out, carried her onto the bus, folded her wheelchair, secured it, and only then started driving. But we don’t want to leave home. And Olena doesn’t want to go either.”
Hladenka stresses that despite the ongoing war, she and her husband are doing everything they can to make their daughter’s life as vibrant as possible. The Social Adaptation Space plays a big role in that.
Recently, Hladenka and her daughter attended another class at the space. The day before, Pryluky had held funerals for fallen soldiers, so the city was in mourning. Nina said that it was an especially emotionally difficult day for her and Olena.
“Everything around us felt so grey,” she says. “But in class, we talked about nature, animals, and birds. By the time we got home, we felt so joyful – like the sun was shining inside our hearts. Can you imagine?”
The Social Adaptation Space has become a place that brings light and colour back into people’s lives, even when the world seems to throw constant challenges at them.
Photo credit: Danylo Antoniuk / Reporters / UNDP in Ukraine
