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!
Mother's Warmth in Every Stitch
This story is about Maria Lukach, a 55-year-old woman from the small village of Mala Zahorivka in Chernihiv region, Ukraine, who truly sees with her heart. Maria lives in darkness, having been completely blind for over a decade. Despite her lack of sight, her inner light and warmth are so profound that they extend to warm Ukrainian soldiers at the front. Without the aid of vision, she knits warm socks for the defenders of her country.
Her son, Vasyl, volunteered to defend their homeland. And Maria, despite her blindness, took up knitting mats and socks to support his comrades-in-arms.
“I’m not doing anything extraordinary,” Maria says with a shy smile.
“It’s just what I can do… My eyes may not see, but my heart — it sees everything, feels everything… I worry about our boys, I want to warm them with my motherly warmth—that’s why I knit for them! Last year I knitted about 200 pairs, maybe even more — I didn’t count them. I knit a dozen pairs and pass them on through local volunteers or directly to my Vasyl.
Vasyl volunteered to go to the front last spring — he said, ‘How can I sit at home when the enemy is almost at our doorstep!’ He’s determined — once he’s made up his mind, that’s it — I knew arguing wouldn’t help. He told me, ‘Mom, don’t cry, I’m going…’ All I could do was bless him.”
Every Stitch is a Prayer
“Vasyl has been to many ‘hot spots’ – I worry about him every day, praying for him every minute… As soon as the war started, I immediately took up knitting socks – I thought, the boys need all the help they can get! I knit blindly, counting the stitches as I go, it’s not hard for me, I’ve gotten used to it… Each stitch for me is accompanied by a prayer: I pray the “Our Father” and the “Hail Mary,” may God help our guys, who are defending Ukraine, may they all come back alive and healthy with victory as soon as possible!
“Hold on a minute,” Maria gets distracted from the interview. “I’m cooking lunch right now: frying some potatoes with fish…”
“Yes, why are you surprised – I prepare everything at home by myself, both everyday meals and more complicated dishes, even bake traditional Easter bread. I know my kitchen like the back of my hand, everything has its place, so I can find and prepare what I need by touch. I joke that my kitchen is like a pharmacy – clean and precise, everything in its place… Frying is a bit tricky – I place things on the pan so I can flip them myself, but I still ask my husband to watch over just in case. My husband also takes care of the poultry and the garden – with God’s help, we manage everything together!
I’m originally from the Zakarpattia region, from the Khust district in Ukraine,” the woman shares about herself. “And I moved here, to Mala Zahorivka in the Chernihiv region, to be with my husband Yuri. I’ve lived here for many years now…”
“My vision started to deteriorate due to diabetes a long time ago, back in 1994. And more than ten years ago, I lost it completely.
I even remember the date: August 12, 2012, was when it all went dark – permanently. We visited so many doctors, I had surgeries on both eyes – nothing helped. It improved slightly, I could see silhouettes and was so happy about that, but then I had a stroke – and darkness returned…
The doctors said – forget about seeing again. They told my husband, not me – I couldn’t have handled that news at the time… The first few years after, I still hoped, waited, but as time passed, the darkness persisted, and I understood that this was how it would be. It was very hard at first – I would get lost even in my own house, cried from feeling so powerless and helpless – that I couldn’t do anything on my own… My Yuri, God bless him, pulled me out of that state – he showed me everything, helped, supported me. And so, little by little, I learned to manage everything – now I “see” everything with my fingers, though I burned and cut myself so many times while learning, and even now it’s not without incidents. But I manage – and manage well.”
And indeed, she sees with her heart like no one else…
Seeing with the Heart: Giving a Piece of Light in the Darkness of War
“First thing in the morning, I try to get all the housework done, prepare breakfast and lunch, wash the dishes, and then I sit down to knit. I don’t want to waste a single idle minute: even when I sit down to have tea, I still manage to knit a row or two on a sock. Now, I knit wearing a mask – the wool makes me sneeze and cough due to allergies, but I still keep knitting, I won’t give it up. I used to buy the yarn myself, but you can’t get much on a pension…
So, I would unravel old sweaters to use for knitting, but after they wrote about me on the internet for the first time, people started sending yarn from all over – from Odesa, Dnipropetrovsk region, Lviv, and even from Chernihiv, Nizhyn, and Korop, all cities of Ukraine…
And they still help, send me yarn, and I’m so grateful for it – you always need yarn. This August, I got a box of yarn and it was gone in no time! People give what they can, they even send knitted items that are no longer needed – I unravel them for yarn, wind them into large balls, and knit from those. I’ve been knitting since school – my late mother knitted, and she taught me. Later, when my children were little, I knitted hats and sweaters for them.”
“Now, I knit and constantly count the stitches to make sure everything matches up – I can’t just look and see how it’s turning out. Sometimes, I make a mistake and have to start over. But I take it up again and keep going, because what else can I do… I want my socks to be nice in color too – not just gray-brown-raspberry, so I “nag” my husband from work – ask him about the colors, ask for his help to choose. Everything has to be perfect – after all, it’s for our boys, for our defenders!
My Vasyl, when he comes home from the front for a day or two, I always give him socks to take back with him – let him distribute them among the boys, to keep them warm, to warm them with my motherly warmth. The last time he came, even though it was a short visit, I managed to roll some cabbage rolls for the boys, bake some tasty treats, and give him socks and mats.”
“I also knit larger mats with needles – for sitting on, putting under their feet in the sleeping bag, or even using as a pillow. The boys have tried them and say they’re good! Another local lady, Karina, also knits socks, so we team up – just recently, she brought me 16 pairs.
Knitting floor mats is the hardest – because you fold and use six or seven threads together, and if the yarn is thin, then even ten. I knit all evening – and in the morning, I can’t even bend my hand – my fingers swell up… You ask if it’s hard? Of course, it’s hard – but it’s even harder for the boys out there. Yet, I don’t lose spirit and put my trust in God…
I’ve learned not to complain, not to lament, to cope with everything. And there’s no time to feel sorrow or heartache while working.
Make sure I look good in the photos,” Maria laughs. “Even though I can’t see, I still want to look my best… And be useful – foremost useful. So, write, children, write – let people read, let them help our boys!”
Maria picks up her needles and yarn again: every row infused with her undying desire to do good and give a piece of light in the darkness of war. And the warm knitting of an incredible woman, who sees with her heart, becomes a symbol of great inner strength, doing the impossible every day and providing the most needed – love and support to those on the frontline, protecting us.
