Mykolai and Volodymyr

Born in Mariupol, a port city on the Sea of Azov and among the most heavily impacted by the war, Mykolai and Volodymyr have survived bombings and air strikes in the months since the conflict began. The brothers and their mother survived for 26 days without water, electricity or heat; resorting to making lamps from oil and cotton wool. Fighting for their survival, their mother cooked food on an open fire while the boys chopped wood for food and warmth. Every day, the family would sit down together to write down their future hopes and dreams on scrap pieces of paper and to pray – begging God to keep them alive during each explosion.

After being forced to seek a new home following the outbreak of a fire, the family believes they have survived through divine intervention alone, their hometown destroyed around them.