I am the author of the Goodacity blog, a journalist, and a translator. For 16 years, I have worked in professional journalism, contributing to regional and national publications, both in print and online media. I have written reports, conducted interviews, reviews, articles on cultural, social, and charitable topics, as well as materials in the style of "solution journalism" and communication materials.
My focus is on creating interesting and exclusive content. Journalism, to me, is primarily about human stories, to which I always find the key, empathize with the people I write about, and love all my heroes. Journalism, to me, means telling people about what truly matters to them, informing and inspiring them. It is not just a job, but a way of life, just like for all those who dream, create, and are inspired by it.
So, if you are looking for stories that inspire and motivate, that instill faith and help find meaning while believing in goodness, read my stories on the Goodacity website.
I am a manager of cultural affairs and a project manager with over 14 years of experience at United Thinkers. I have participated in the organization of numerous successful social and charitable projects and have implemented informational campaigns and communication cases.
As a marketing manager, I have been involved in organizing marketing and sociological research, working with media and partners, developing advertising and marketing strategies, as well as planning and implementing advertising campaigns.
I believe in the power of goodness and I am happy that as part of the Goodacity project, I can contribute to its expansion. I believe in the power of words and in the fact that communication can help make the world a better place. I know how, where and when to speak in order to be heard. And when you are heard, you can change the world!
Helping the army of Ukraine – a common cause for Mrs. Olena
“Helping the army of Ukraine is everyone’s responsibility, and more than that, everyone is now holding their own front,” says Olena Ivanova from Chernihiv. “Her husband is on the front line, her son Dmytro saved people during the siege of Chernihiv last year at the age of 16, and she herself actively volunteers to bring Victory closer! From the first days of the war, we understood that we couldn’t just sit and watch what was happening around us, and we knew for sure that we would help. After all, there was only one option – to bring our Victory closer!
It’s all about people who care… You know, I was collecting supplies for our soldiers in the East, and as soon as I wrote about it, the doors to my house never closed: people kept coming and bringing things… I walk around and just cry – we have such amazing people!”
Many in Chernihiv know Olena because she has helped and continues to help coordinate various processes from her own kitchen. “Right now, as I speak with you, I’m also preparing treats for the front,” she says. “And we’re also collecting funds for the army and need to pick up some products… We’ve been living at this frenzied pace for a year and a half now. But we’re not tired! Everyone has become someone else over this year. Much stronger. And when you think about our guys who are now on the front lines, you immediately find extra strength! I’m lucky to have an indispensable assistant – my son Dmytro, who helps our volunteer movement in any way he can! And at school – he’s now in the 11th grade – he’s getting ready for final exams and helps me carry, pack, and load everything we need for our volunteer work. He sees everything we do – and he can’t help but be involved.”
War made my son a paramedic at 16
“On February 23 last year, he went to bed still a child, and on February 24 he woke up as an adult man!» says Olena about her son. We woke up to the sound of explosions, and when we asked, ‘What are we going to do?’ Dmytro replied without hesitation, ‘I’m running to the pharmacy!’ He immediately decided that he would help people, because he had been interested in medicine since he was a child and knew a lot and was skilled. I, on the other hand, focused on how to help the army and everyone who needed it.”
“During the hostilities, my aunt called us to help civilians and military personnel in Chernihiv School No. 18 – the same one that was destroyed by the Russian occupiers during an air raid… Many soldiers were there, as well as doctors, cooks, and volunteers, and I called Dmitro to come and help us peel potatoes or make sandwiches – we were short-handed. He came, looked around, and said, “Mom, I joined the territorial defense!” I was incredibly worried about him, but I didn’t even try to refuse – I knew that once he made up his mind, that was it!
Dmytro passed the exam for first aid and was taken to help the military. We were together in the school building when a bomb was dropped on it in the first days of March. We miraculously survived, it was such a horror…”
But my son wasn’t scared, he didn’t get confused, and immediately started pulling people out from under the rubble and rescuing the wounded. “Paramedic at 16” – that’s how Chernihiv publications wrote about Dmytro. It’s scary to even think about how much he saw and experienced during that terrible spring at his young age – the deaths of people, destruction, horror, and pain in people’s eyes. One summer day, I saw a police car bringing Dmytro home, and I was scared. I asked, “What happened?” And the policeman told me, “This young man saved me in the spring, so whenever I see Dmytro, I try to give him a ride.” Despite everything, my son hasn’t lost that bright spirit in himself and the desire to help. And even today, he’s constantly involved in volunteering work.”
How to help the army? By showing the soldiers that we care about them
We have joined forces with like-minded individuals to support the Ukrainian army by preparing meals for the front lines. A drop of love, a piece of home warmth, and a quiet prayer – these are the main ingredients of the dishes that are prepared for the front lines.
“What are we doing? We are making sure that even in the trenches, our boys feel at home,” says Mrs. Olena. “Now, a few times a week, Svitlanka and Iryna come to my place to cook together. I am very grateful to these girls who, despite everything, come to help at the first call.”
Military personnel turn to us when there is a need – if a supply shipment hasn’t arrived or if their stock has run out. We cook different dishes based on the requests from various brigades and send them to the front lines… We cook with whatever ingredients we can gather. For example, yesterday we received half a wild boar and we processed it overnight with the girls, roasted the meat, fried some cutlets, and today everything is heading to the front lines… Dmitry also helps us – he last checked the package heading to the front and said, “It seems a bit small, I’ll bake some more cookies right now.”
I was most touched by the story of our soldier on the front line who asked for a simple packet of jelly to be included in his package. He said, “We don’t have any water, but we’ll melt the snow and make it – I just really wanted some jelly.” It brought me to tears. Sweets are always enjoyable, and another one of our defenders once “ordered” a homemade waffle cake with condensed milk – a favorite dish of everyone since childhood. That’s what we do – our snacks give the soldiers a taste of home.
Once, someone asked me, “Do you only cook for your own?” And I said, “I have no strangers. I haven’t seen or met any of them personally, but they are all mine, all of ours, the most ours!
When I cook, I cook for everyone, as if for a relative, a brother, a son… I want them to feel that. You worry about everyone. We not only cook, but also, for example, when someone writes that they don’t have shoes, we drop everything and run around the city looking for where someone might have some. Helping the Ukrainian army is now, I believe, everyone’s business.”
There's no time to get tired - we need to work and help the army every day
There are two hardest aspects to this work: when the soldiers ask for something to be cooked, but there’s nothing to cook with, and the scariest thing is when a package is sent to the front line, but the intended recipients are no longer there… I tell everyone: we can’t afford to think about being tired right now, we simply can’t afford to be tired when we know our soldiers are risking their lives on the front lines so we can live peacefully here. Our great faith in Victory inspires us all. I am convinced that we need to give a piece of ourselves for a free future and do what we can and what we’re good at. This motivates our team to continue working and helping the army every day, from early morning until late evening.”
Personally, one memorable and symbolic moment for me was last spring when we were still in the 18th school. It was really difficult with food back then, and an old, bent-over grandma came to us and handed me a little bag with a handful of boiled pasta in it. She said, “I cooked everything I had, left a little for myself and my dog, and wanted to share this with you…” If it weren’t for such People, I don’t know what we would all do – People gave not a little, not a lot, but everything they had!
Nowadays, such People help our culinary front too: a woman who is raising three children herself tells us, “Let me bring you some canned food.” She brought “a little” – we couldn’t even lift the package among four of us, and she laughed. When we sent a package to the guys, she signed it “From a single mother with three children” – I just wanted to highlight her action! So that when we win, everyone can see and know that it’s thanks to that grandma with a handful of pasta and everyone else who helps and contributes…
We find strength in such People. We could talk for hours about our incredible people with big hearts. Many people say, “What can I do?”. You can actually do a lot. Everything is possible – if you open your heart…
