Anastasia Perekupka’s family (she, her husband, 2 daughters and a son) left the city of Kreminna in mid-March 2022. They decided to evacuate when heavy fighting broke out in most towns in Luhansk Oblast. An evacuation bus took them to Lyman, and then they went on to Dnipro through Donetsk region. We ended up in this city by chance. At the railway station, we found out the phone number of the Dobro na Amur Charity Foundation’s shelter, called, arranged to come and decided to stay here.

At first, the living conditions in the shelter were difficult: cold water, no possibility to take a shower, one bathroom for everyone, makeshift beds made of pallets, etc. But gradually the conditions improved thanks to the efforts of the residents and volunteers. The family got a separate room where they live now. Before the war, Anastasia worked at home, her husband was engaged in construction work, and in the shelter they first helped with repairs, but now she takes care of the family, and her husband got a job in Dnipro as a welder.

The family’s hometown is now occupied, and their house is almost destroyed (only the walls remain). It is not known when they will be able to visit Kreminna and rebuild their own home, so they will have to live in a shelter for some time after the war ends. However, they do not complain and express their gratitude to the volunteers who have taken them in, for trying to make life in the shelter more comfortable and communication better, and to create a friendly atmosphere in the shelter. This is what keeps many IDPs here – a good attitude towards people.