Author:
Yuliia Didenko
The last buses will soon set off from the Carpathians for cities across the country. But shared group chats, camp photos, and promises to meet again will remain on the participants' phones. Voices Camp has completed its third consecutive season, with the support of and in partnership with the Olena Zelenska Foundation. This summer, the Voices of Children foundation ran eight sessions for 448 children affected by the war.
What the children brought with them to the Carpathians, and how the sessions unfolded
Ivanna says that at home she falls asleep in the bathroom or with headphones on, so as not to hear the sounds of shelling. Out in the open, she instinctively begins scanning for a dip in the ground or any other place to take cover. Stanislav is used to studying either in the classroom or in a shelter, depending on the air-raid alerts. At camp, what calmed him most were the mountains, the forests, and the chance to simply be out in nature.
"Every year of war brings more accumulated stress and worry. The children have had no break to catch their breath and regain their strength. Our task is to create more life alongside their grief. We cannot erase this scar, but we can give them more to lean on. Summer, memories, swimming, squabbles, hugs, this is what life is. And we are glad that, thanks to our deepening cooperation with the Olena Zelenska Foundation, even more children will be able to come to camp,"
Olena also recalls how, last year, ten-year-old Liera came to the camp. She was born in Sloviansk when the war was already underway there, and at the start of the full-scale invasion her family was living in Mariupol. After at least five relocations, the girl deeply missed home and her old school. Her mother wrote to the foundation to say that, after camp, Liera came back calmer and less tense, having learned to live through loss while once again allowing herself to feel joy.
Each session lasted 14 days. This year, across four intakes, two sessions ran at the same time, so there were far more children in the mountains than the year before. At first, the participants sized each other up, searching for common ground and "their people." The children took part in art therapy and movement therapy, team games, communication and self-presentation workshops, hikes, quizzes, debates, and talent nights. Each session was run by six camp leaders, three psychologists, and an administrative team.
"For the first time in a long while, I saw my daughter happy, smiling, and open to others. She's coming home with wonderful memories. For our family, this is priceless,"
For thirteen-year-old Yulia, the mountain hike turned out to be both hard and beautiful. She calls the workshops fantastic, and among the master workshops she remembers most the ones where she could do whatever she liked — modelling with clay and painting with watercolours on wet paper. Sixteen-year-old Anhelina values most about camp exactly what she lacks at home.
"It really helps me take a break from my phone, unwind, become more outgoing, and discover new sides of myself,"
Fourteen-year-old Oryna recalls the hikes, the creative evenings, the pool, and the late-night gatherings with the girls in their room — the conversations, the jokes, and the mutual support.
"For me, this camp became a place where I could step away from my everyday worries, make new friends, and try my hand at something new. What I valued most was the feeling of a second family, because when the session ended it was so hard to part with the people I had grown so attached to,"
Olena Zelenska's visit and the Antytila concert at Voices Camp
During one of the sessions, the camp welcomed the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, together with the team of the Olena Zelenska Foundation and the Minister of Education and Science, Andrii Butenko. The band Antytila also came to the camp and gave a concert for 112 participants and the project team.
"We cannot change what our children have lived through, but we can do everything so that they are not left alone with that experience. That is why the Foundation systematically supports psychosocial assistance projects that allow children to gradually restore their sense of safety, trust, and confidence in themselves,"
The teenagers asked their guests about music, childhood, dreams, choosing a profession, and the decisions they had made at different points in their lives. The band members performed their hits and sang a lot with the children, including one song performed together with Bohdan, a teenager who puts on guitar concerts in the evenings. Taras Topolia was also asked how the band had heard about the camp.
"They called us and said there were some cool kids here,"
Feedback from the 2026 Voices Camp participants
At the end of each session, the children share their impressions with the foundation. Most often, they write about the people around them.
"The most valuable thing at camp for me was the people. I love meeting all kinds of people and hearing their thoughts and views. I also liked that we had so many shared events and activities that brought us together. It was the atmosphere of support, friendship, and teamwork that left me with the best impressions,"
Oleksandra describes how she changed over two weeks at camp. What helped her most, she says, were the workshops, the evening reflections, and the crafts.
"Thanks to you, I now believe in myself, and I believe a little bit more that I'm capable of something. Thank you for these two weeks of love and support. I'll definitely try to come back to you next year and feel once again that I matter to someone,"
Children come to the camp from front-line and de-occupied territories, from families of internally displaced people and service members, and from among those who lost their home or loved ones because of the war.
The first five sessions were funded by The Howard G. Buffett Foundation as part of the "Youth Spaces 12–21" project, the sixth by Svenska Postkodlotteriet Stiftelse, and the seventh and eighth by the Estonian Centre for International Development (ESTDEV).
Over three years of partnership between the Voices of Children foundation and the Olena Zelenska Foundation, 18 sessions have taken place, involving 946 children from all over Ukraine:
The first five sessions were funded by The Howard G. Buffett Foundation as part of the "Youth Spaces 12–21" project, the sixth by Svenska Postkodlotteriet Stiftelse, and the seventh and eighth by the Estonian Centre for International Development (ESTDEV).
Over three years of partnership between the Voices of Children foundation and the Olena Zelenska Foundation, 18 sessions have taken place, involving 946 children from all over Ukraine:
- 274 in 2024;
- 224 in 2025;
- 448 this year.
Фундація Олени Зеленської – українська благодійна організація, яку заснувала перша леді України Олена Зеленська у 2022 році. Фундація реалізує проєкти для дітей, підлітків та молоді у трьох основних напрямах: розвиток та підтримка сімейних форм виховання, доступ дітей до навчання та розвитку, а також психосоціальна підтримка підлітків та молоді.
БФ «Голоси дітей» – найбільший український фонд із комплексної психологічної допомоги дітям і батькам, які зазнали впливу війни. Фонд всебічно підтримує дітей і родини, працює з громадами та дитячими закладами по всій країні.
БФ «Голоси дітей» – найбільший український фонд із комплексної психологічної допомоги дітям і батькам, які зазнали впливу війни. Фонд всебічно підтримує дітей і родини, працює з громадами та дитячими закладами по всій країні.
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