Free Accommodation for Kids with Cancer in Ukraine

Dear friends,

thank you for supporting our project Center for Children Affected by Cancer Dacha!

We can write a lot of stories about our Center. After all, every family that comes to this house brings their experiences, their habits, introduces something new. We cannot say that only good things happen here. Sometimes there are misunderstandings. And it’s quite normal because every person has his/her own habits and preferences that the others may not understand. Also people are anxious because of their children’s disease. What helps to reduce emotional distress and to build good relations is working together. For example, from time to time families organize general cleaning of the house, rooms, the kitchen and the yard. While working people speak with each other, joke and laugh. Then they have a rest together with coffee and sweets. And they forget about past disagreements.

That’s Dacha’s everyday life but sometimes we have really extraordinary stories that may become a movie. One day 17-year-old girl old was hospitalized at the Cancer Institute. She was completely alone in the world. Neither her mother nor her father came to visit her. Later we found out that her parents were alcoholics. The girl often looked with sadness at the families who took care of their ill children.  But the next time we saw her we noticed that the girl looked really happy and even her condition improved. It turned out that a guy came to be with her. He introduced himself as her brother because he was afraid that he would not be allowed to visit her at the hospital. He stayed in the common room at the Dacha during his beloved's treatment.  Every day he took care of the girl, cooked delicious meals for her and brought to the hospital everything she needed. When she received chemotherapy he held her hand and tried to distract her from pain. Between chemo cycles they could stay together at the Dacha. Anybody who saw them was sure that it was a true love. And now this story has a happy end.  The girl completed treatment successfully and a few days ago we found out that they got married!

Dacha is really a magic place that helps families to stay together through hard times and even to create new families too. Thank you for making it possible!