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Nizhyn Schoolgirl Diana Nasibova Raises 800,000 Hryvnias for Ukrainian Soldiers
It’s Saturday afternoon, and 12-year-old Diana Nasibova is in her room, diligently doing her homework. On the wall of her room hangs a large yellow and blue flag signed by Ukrainian soldiers: “Thank you for your help”, “Together to Victory”; in her wardrobe, a military jacket gifted to her by them, and on a shelf among her simple childhood treasures, a small glass disc with the inscription “National Animal Protection Award”.
Diana is no ordinary Nizhyn schoolgirl! Child volunteers hold their sincere and touching front, raising funds for the dream of millions – Victory! Over more than a year of volunteering, this young girl has collected over 800,000 hryvnias in aid for Ukrainian soldiers, and she is also the country’s only child laureate of the National Animal Protection Award from UA Animals!
For Diana and her family, volunteering, supporting the Ukrainian army, and caring for animals is a natural and familiar endeavor.
Volunteering – A Call of the Heart
Diana turned 12 this July. Wrapped in the yellow and blue flag, she can be spotted at the market in Nizhyn, Ukraine, every weekend, and sometimes even more frequently. For over a year now, Diana has been selling handmade ornaments to aid Ukrainian soldiers. Near her stall, one can often see a carrier with kittens or puppies – the girl, along with her mother, takes care of stray animals and finds them new homes.
“Nobody pushes her towards this, nobody forces her – it’s entirely her initiative and desire,” says the girl’s mother, Mrs. Svitlana.
“Diana is passionately committed to helping the military, caring for animals, and everything she does! It comes from her heart!
In our family, it’s customary to always help those in need – it’s a way of life, and the child grew up watching this. From a young age, Diana has been concerned and caring for all living beings, not just cats and dogs, hedgehogs and birds, but even insects and spiders,” the woman laughs.
“Even though she’s very afraid of them, Diana carefully protected the life of every spider or fly that came into her room – they could only be gently released…
When Diana was born, we had five dogs at home, and they, along with me, ‘babysat’ her – they always lived in complete harmony and understanding! My daughter loves animals very much. Probably, it’s in her genes – as long as I can remember, I’ve been helping homeless and abandoned ‘tails’: rescuing, treating, sterilizing, and finding them good homes. I would put little Dianochka in a stroller, take the carriers with the animals under my care, and head to the market to try to find them homes. And when my daughter grew a bit, she offered herself – ‘Mom, you’re working, let me go to the market with the fluffy ones…’. She’s a great girl – she knows who can be trusted with an animal and who can’t, always inquires about the conditions in which it will live, and never gives it to careless hands. She takes photos of the people who take a cat or dog, writes down their contacts, and warns that we will check in some time to see the conditions the animal is being kept in. Thus, Diana has been helping as an animal volunteer for many years, and with the onset of the full-scale Russian invasion, she began helping our defenders – just like other child volunteers.
When Victory is Hastened by Child Volunteers…
Diana says her dearest wish is for the war to end. She recalls the morning of February 24th when her mother woke her not with the words, “honey, it’s time for school,” but with “honey, the war has started…”
“When the full-scale war began, we were just at home nursing some newborn puppies we had found in the trash,” Mrs. Svitlana shares.
“From the first days, my husband was with the guys at the checkpoints, defending our town – and he convinced me, along with our daughter and the puppies, to move to a friend’s place. So there we were, all together – our two dogs, our friend’s two dogs, and the three little puppies – living as one big family. We were amazed when, despite all the horror around us, people volunteered to adopt the puppies – it was simply miraculous! For about a month, Diana and I stayed with friends in the Lviv region of Ukraine. When our father, who was helping to evacuate people from besieged Chernihiv and Nizhyn, Ukraine, visited us, we passed on food supplies for the people in the city and, of course, cat and dog food – which he later sent us photos of the fed ‘tails.’ By Easter, we had returned to Nizhyn.
Diana resumed her efforts to find homes for animals at the market, and one day she came back and said, ‘Mom, there’s going to be a fair – what if I took my beadwork there to sell for the military?’ She did, joining other child volunteers at the fair, and came back so happy and inspired – she had made almost 400 hryvnias for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Then she said, ‘Can I go every day and give the money to Father Sergiy at the All Saints Church? He’s been delivering aid to the soldiers weekly since 2014.’ And so the work began: Diana would weave bead bracelets and keychains in the evening, and go to the market to sell them in the morning. She was thrilled when people bought her crafts or simply donated, and on days when she could gather even a thousand hryvnias for our boys. Thanks to caring people with big hearts, we started fulfilling the military’s requests: another thermal imager, Starlink, generator, or other necessary equipment was on its way to our warriors. I helped Diana by setting up her crafts, taking photos of her with the kind souls who bought her products and helped the military, and in the evening, I posted a social media report of the amount collected. I see that some people recognize Diana when she goes to the market, the mayor of Nizhyn even awarded her an official volunteer badge. For my daughter, the greatest joy is when soldiers visit, when she gets to talk with them, and when they thank her, gift her patches, when they brought her a flag signed by the guys, her happiness knew no bounds! They are all her Heroes, all her dearest! We have many friends now defending Ukraine, my brother is fighting, my friend is fighting – I believe, now, every conscious Ukrainian should help those who are defending us.”
Not Turning Our Backs on Those Who Return from War
“When we tallied up how much Diana had collected, even we were astounded: over the course of a year and some – eight hundred thousand hryvnias! At this rate, if we push a little harder, we’ll hit a million by New Year!.. I can’t thank the incredible people enough who help, energize, and inspire! Sometimes, someone will come up, give a hug, have a chat – and from that person, you receive so much positivity and inspiration – you sometimes want to hug everyone, write about each one, thank them! It’s not the amount of the donation that counts, but the spirit and inspiration, the light that a person carries within. Diana has been coming to the market for over a year to raise funds for the military’s needs – and, you know, there are people who have been supporting us for over a year, coming to the market specifically to donate to her…
There’s a ‘spoonful of tar’ sometimes – it’s very hard and unpleasant when faced with negativity: hearing things like “why does she bother,” “it’s all just PR”… Those ‘well-wishers’ should try doing what Diana does – going to the market every other day for a year – in the heat and the cold, in rain and wind… I post photos on my social media of Diana and people who buy her crafts and help the army not because I’m ‘promoting’ my child. I show and will continue to show the People who help! Often our soldiers write to me – thank you, I saw someone from my family in the photos – a brother, aunt, grandmother… I post so she can be an example for others. Because if one more person comes and stands by her side – that’s twice as much help for our boys!
It hurts to hear, here in the rear, things like: “How much longer will this war go on, we’re tired, how much more can we donate?” In apartments, in warm beds – tired?! And our boys THERE – aren’t they tired? In winter, sometimes it was minus ten outside, snow blowing, the market ladies would call us: “Don’t come with Diana today, it’s very cold, no one is here…”
We looked at each other, and she said to me: “Mom, our soldiers don’t have weekends…” We dressed warmer, I wrapped Diana in a scarf up to her eyes – and off we went! And, you know, my daughter didn’t get sick once last winter. For her, the scariest phrase is to hear: “That’s it, you’re not going to the market today!” – laughs Mrs. Svitlana.
“I can’t even imagine how she manages everything,” says the girl’s mother. “She helps me at home, keeps up with her studies. School, extracurriculars, making ornaments, and every Saturday and Sunday – from morning to market, collecting donations and helping with animal adoption. As soon as she returns from the market, she finishes her homework and says: ‘Mom, I still have a bit of time, let’s go to the shelter, I’ll play with the puppies – they must be lonely.’ And we’ve been living like this for the second year… This lifestyle – it’s not always easy, but very inspiring – you spend time, money, but in such a way, you fill your heart…”
“It’s not hard for me,” assures Diana, when asked about her non-stop volunteering, which she dedicates her time and heart to. “Sometimes I get tired, but then I tell myself that it’s nothing compared to what our soldiers are going through – they are very strong, so we need to be strong too! Now I’ll finish my homework and go to the shelter – to walk the dogs, they’re poor things, sitting all day waiting…”
Saturday evening. Diana finishes her homework, counts and neatly folds the bracelets and keychains, runs her hand over the yellow-and-blue flag and the military jacket gifted by Ukrainian Defenders. Tomorrow – back to the market, where she will again collect donations and aid for Ukrainian soldiers. Tomorrow is a new day – and we will be one day closer to our Victory. And it’s such child volunteers who are bringing it closer!
