Author:
Khrystyna Tymofiichuk
For the fourth year in a row, the Voices of Children Charitable Foundation has been organizing camps for children affected by the war. This spring, 30 children aged 11 to 16 enjoyed rest and recovery at a camp in the Chernivtsi region. This year’s camp was made possible with the financial support of Binance.
16-year-old Tania has lost count of how many times she’s had to move in her life. She says that her relatives jokingly call her a “wandering frog.” The girl is originally from Horlivka, which has been under occupation since 2014. Later, Tania lived in Kramatorsk—the city she still considers home. But in 2022, the war reached there too.
I was scared, but I already knew what to do. I grabbed my bag and packed the essentials. Then I sat in the hallway with my mom—and fell asleep there,
What followed was a sad kaleidoscope of cities and countries. Tania and her mother evacuated abroad and eventually returned. Today, they’ve found temporary shelter in Drohobych, a town in the Lviv region.
It’s comfortable there, but it’s not my home,
13-year-old Zhenia has his own story. He’s from Mykolaiv but now lives with his mother and younger brother in Lviv.
We first turned to the Foundation’s regional Center for psychological support. My son would sometimes burst into tears without being able to explain why. The psychologist explained that Zhenia sees himself as the ‘man of the house’—responsible for his mom and little brother—but he’s simply too young to bear that complex role. After the consultation with a psychologist, he felt better. Then, he was invited to the camp. I was nervous—I even expected a phone call saying, ‘Mom, please take me home.’ But when I came to pick him up, he said he didn’t want to leave,
For 14 days, the camp was packed with activities—games, hiking, contests, sports, creative workshops, and lots of conversations. The teenagers bonded and, with the help of a psychologist, began to process their feelings.
There were kids from the Donetsk and Kharkiv regions. It felt easy with them—we understood each other. I especially liked the sessions with the psychologist. I started noticing what was happening inside me through meditation and working with my body. I realized it’s okay to talk about how you feel,
Liza Morhoch, a Voices of Children Foundation psychologist, confirms the camp is much more than a break from daily life. It aims to create a space of safety and joy—for children whose usual lives were upended by the war. A place where children can begin to heal emotionally, smile sincerely, and reclaim their voices. However, each teenager has their own individual path from anxiety to a safe smile.
It’s hard to talk about seeing a tank outside your burning house. As a psychologist, I call it ‘unpacking’—that moment when we notice that a child begins to share what’s been buried deep inside for a long time. Every child needs their own time to open up. For some, two or three days in a camp are enough. But even when this opening up occurs on the last day, we know the mission is accomplished. Every small step a child takes toward their feelings is deeply meaningful to us adults. It’s a step toward healing,
Olena Rozvadovska, co-founder of the Voices of Children Foundation, emphasizes that the camp program is intentionally designed to avoid potentially traumatic topics for children while helping them cope with their complex experiences.
Many children today live separated from friends, study online, and lack opportunities for live communication. At camp, they can form social bonds, receive emotional support, and engage in activities that reduce stress. Voices of Children is truly grateful to Binance for supporting this initiative,
At Binance, we believe that caring for children and supporting their emotional recovery is the most important investment in the future. We’re proud to be partners in this initiative and firmly believe projects like this help create safe spaces where children can feel safe and make new friends. It’s an honor to support Voices of Children and witness the real change their work brings,
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