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!
With Warmth and Love: A Grandfather Knits a Hundred Pairs of Socks for the Front Lines!
“Tell the boys — grandpa knitted these,” Boris Ivanovich says with a smile, as he hands over another batch of socks for the front lines. “Hope they won’t mind if anything’s amiss. I tried my best for them, may they wear them and be healthy!”
And from the grandfather — more than a hundred pairs! Each pair hand-knitted with care and warmth, with thoughts of victory, each bearing endless love for people! And when he passes on another batch of these warm gifts to the front, joy always shines in his eyes, and his heart is filled with hope.
“My pension is just a pittance, so I help with what I can,” the man says.
“Here I am, barely walking with a cane, went to the pharmacy today — hardly made it back home. But as long as I can, I’ll keep knitting. Thinking of them out there in the mud, in the cold, I want to help them somehow. Can’t just sit around doing nothing — so I knit socks…”
Love for People is in Every Stitch
Boris Ivanovich is well into his eighties, living alone since his beloved wife passed away three years ago. His health is failing — he makes his way to the volunteer center with difficulty, leaning heavily on his cane, asking for others to speak up due to his severe hearing loss. These visits to the volunteers, bringing the socks he has knitted by hand, are his solace… Love for people is in every stitch. He pours his soul into each knot, thread, and loop, believing that each pair brings happiness and warmth to those wearing them on the front lines. This knitted thread is the singular connection he has to the world…
Boris Ivanovich cherishes each meeting, as loneliness weighs heaviest in old age. He manages his basic needs—cooking simple meals and tidying up. Then, it’s back to solitude, his books, newspapers. And memories, memories, memories…
“What’s there to say about me,” Boris Ivanovich says with a smile. “Just a person, like any other…
Born in Kazakhstan — though my mother was originally from Chernihiv region, Ukraine. She was young when the Soviets ‘de-kulakized’ my grandfather and deported the whole family to Kazakhstan. There, my mother married, and there I was born. After living 22 years there, I decided to move to my mother’s homeland. I came here, to Chernihiv, Ukraine, and found my love — my wife Victoria, who lived in the Horodnyansky district. We were soulmates for 60 years. You can imagine what my health is like — it’s been failing, and then there was COVID. She fell ill, was hospitalized… I got sick too, was taken to a different hospital — and the next day, they called to say my wife had passed away.
Such a tragedy… The neighbors buried her — because I was lying in the hospital, too weak. I ended up alone, as thin as a rake. My legs are sick, they barely carry me — I can’t even visit my Vika’s grave…
My son, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter are far away, life has scattered our relatives, and I don’t have any left here. Alone in four walls all day long — I might as well howl at the moon… Then last year, I found myself chatting with my neighbor Svitlana during an air raid, sitting in the basement, hiding. I saw her winding yarn, she winked at me: ‘Don’t you want to knit some socks for our boys?’. She joked, but I replied seriously: ‘Why not, I know how, I can knit…'”.
Warming the Soldiers at the Front!
“Went together to the girls helping out (the organization “Voice of Parents”); they gave us yarn, and off I went knitting,” shares Boris Ivanovich. “Now I have work to do, feels much brighter — sitting here, knitting… I tell myself: each pair is one more soldier kept warm. With the rains and cold now, these knitted socks might go into their boots or be changed into to keep dry and warm, it all comes in handy.
My mother taught me to knit in childhood — or rather, I taught myself: watching her knit and trying to mimic her. Gradually, I got the hang of it and got into it. I knitted sweaters and vests for my wife, warm socks for my mother-in-law… It’s not hard for me — I knit, thinking about what color to choose, how to combine them best. I gauge the size by eye — but making sure they’re not too small, fitting the boys’ feet… If something’s not right — undo the thread and start over — I want it to be nice, not just anyhow! ‘Shoddy work’ won’t do,” he laughs…
“For myself, I don’t need much now — just health, but you can’t even buy that at the pharmacy anymore… But when I knit for the boys, I feel useful, needed,” the man says.
“I’ve never been afraid of work: was an electrician, a mechanic, worked at a nylon factory, a radio factory, Nizhyn mechanical factory, even spent ten years at a bakery after retiring. But now, that’s all behind me, I’m glad if I can still be of any use…
Thanks to the girls from the ‘Voice of Parents’ organization for helping with the yarn, for welcoming and supporting me, an old man. Every month I knit about ten pairs and bring them over. Right from the doorstep, I call out, ‘Where’s my Oksana?’, I come alive with them! I hand over the socks, they add them to all the good stuff they send to our soldiers, and everyone’s happy.
And they give me more yarn — and off I go to knit again… I’ve been knitting for almost a year now — the girls counted up to a hundred pairs from my ‘production’ by early autumn.
Just socks? No, these aren’t just socks! They’re warmth and care sent to the front. Perhaps one of the most important things in old age is to feel useful. For Boris Ivanovich, knitting has become the meaning of his days. This activity charges him with positive energy and hope. Each pair of socks he knits is not just an item of clothing but a symbol of support and love for the soldiers. Even with limited health and a modest pension, Boris Ivanovich continues to do everything in his power to help those currently on the front lines. Such boundless love for people is not just in words but in action.
“Our boys are brave,” says Boris Ivanovich. “Pass on to them to take care, and to come back with victory. Victory is assured! And I am pleased if my knitting can bring it even a centimeter closer… Glory to Ukraine!”
Boris Ivanovich reminds us that age and physical limitations do not prevent one from showing kindness and sharing love for people. He continues to make the world brighter and warmer for those defending our country.
Thank you, Boris Ivanovich, for your inexhaustible warmth and kindness! May your hands always be strong, and your heart filled with joy. And may your socks bring warmth and comfort to every soldier at the front.
