Partners join forces through the EBRD Community Initiative to support Children of Heroes programs
Partners have joined forces through the EBRD Community Initiative to support the Children of Heroes Charity Fund. The initiative will fund two psychological support programmes, Svitliachok and Strength Within You, alongside nine months of English language lessons for 315 children.
The Children of Heroes Charity Fund brought together partners through the EBRD Community Initiative to support children who have lost one or both parents as a result of the war. Thanks to this joint initiative, the Fund will be able to deliver two psychological support programmes, ‘Svitliachok’ and ‘Strength Within You’, as well as provide nine months of English language lessons for 315 children.
Together, partners and donors raised €50,000. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) contributed an additional €50,000 through its matching funding mechanism under EBRD Community Initiative, doubling the amount raised. This brings the total funding available for the programmes to €100,000.
The EBRD Community Initiative is a charitable programme through which EBRD staff raise funds for projects addressing important social needs, with the Bank providing matching contributions to supported initiatives. This mechanism increases the funding available and helps sustain programmes that require consistent support over an extended period.
Partners supporting the initiative
The fundraising campaign brought together international and Ukrainian companies, organisations, charitable platforms and individual donors.
The Children of Heroes Charity Fund thanks the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for co-funding the fundraising under EBRD Community Initiative, as well as all project partners and donors: DataArt, Deloitte Ukraine, Ukreximbank, Finance in Motion, UGB (Ukrgasbank), Dentons Europe Foundation and individual donors.
Every contribution helped achieve the fundraising target and secure additional funding from the EBRD Community Initiative.
The partners’ involvement will enable the Fund to provide children with access to programmes offering regular psychological support, opportunities to maintain social connections and sustained educational support.
Continuing the partnership
In 2023–2024, with support from the EBRD Community Initiative, the Fund implemented a psychological support project for children and their families, with total funding exceeding UAH 5.9 million. The project delivered 5,529 individual psychological consultations, 228 group consultations and 604 art therapy sessions.
This experience played an important role in developing the Fund’s psychological support services. The new initiative expands the scope of the partnership by combining psychological support programmes with educational opportunities for children.
‘It is important to us that the support children receive reflects their needs at different stages of growing up. After losing one or both parents, a child continues to grow, learn, discover their abilities and make plans for the future. At each of these stages, they may need different forms of support. Thanks to our partners, we can provide continuity of care and create opportunities that will remain valuable to children for many years to come,’ said Hanna Khomenko, Director of Programme Management and Chief Operating Officer at the Children of Heroes Charity Fund.
The Children of Heroes Charity Fund thanks all partners and donors for contributing to the fundraising campaign, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for co-funding the initiative. This collective support will make it possible to deliver psychological and educational programmes that help children cope with the impact of bereavement, develop their abilities and gradually build their own futures.
