Warmth and Well-being for IDPs Thanks to Our Friends in Taiwan

Our previous publications highlighted the challenges faced by Ukrainian internally displaced persons (IDPs) residing in temporary housing centers established due to the war.  Many of these centers have become permanent residences, rather than temporary solutions.

The most disheartening challenges involve basic necessities: heat, clean water, and food.  In the cases we describe, a critical need for a new boiler was identified at the IDP shelter at the "Dzherelny" sanatorium in Modrychi village, Lviv Oblast, in late January.  The old boiler was failing.  Thanks to the assistance of the 外交部 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC（Taiwan） the NGO ForestCom team was able to tender, select a winner, and deliver a replacement boiler.

According to Olha, the director of the "Dzherelny" sanatorium, the administration had been persistently seeking a replacement for the old, faulty boiler for a long time, making numerous appeals and receiving unfulfilled promises.

The urgency of restoring heating was heightened by the shelter's current residents: 74 individuals, primarily women, young children, pensioners, and people with disabilities.  Since the beginning of the full-scale russian invasion, hundreds of people have passed through the sanatorium, receiving shelter, support, assistance with departure abroad, and material and psychological aid, all funded by the sanatorium itself.  While some come and go, others have formed a close-knit community, supporting one another.

Oleh, an IDP from Mariupol, recalls the early days, when all his belongings fit into a single bag, and 4-5 people, sometimes strangers, shared small rooms. He speaks with pain about relatives he couldn't evacuate from occupied territories and the loss of his home.

Currently, the construction of a new building with a swimming pool and a gym is underway on the sanatorium grounds, with varying success depending on donor funding.

The shelter's residents express deep gratitude to the people of Taiwan for their assistance in providing this much-needed, long-awaited industrial solid-fuel boiler.

BEFORE:	NOW:

We extend our sincere thanks to the driver-dispatcher, Petro Karachevsky, for his help, diligence, and efficiency, as well as to everyone involved in assisting the IDPs.

The residents of the shelter in Modrychi village still need basic food products, hygiene items, and household chemicals. If you are able to help, please contact us at info@forestcom.org.ua.

Another shelter that has become a long-term home for internally displaced persons (IDPs) is the hotel in Verkhovyna National Nature Park, currently housing 10 individuals.  To improve the shelter's facilities, the NGO ForestCom purchased a water purification system (reverse osmosis filter) for spring water. This eliminates the need to buy bottled drinking and cooking water, also offering an environmentally friendly solution by reducing plastic waste in the area.  The residents also received a washing machine and a refrigerator.

For more details, please see the video: https://youtube.com/shorts/kKtzQVOPKow

❤️‍ Together we can do a lot!

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the  外交部 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC（Taiwan） for providing humanitarian assistance.

The humanitarian activities of the NGO Forestcom are carried out within the framework of the project "Local Humanitarian Response Initiatives: Taiwan relief supplies to Ukraine_LHRI_Taiwan" with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan)  外交部 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC（Taiwan).