UKRAINE — The Hearts of Love special needs children’s center remains open in the midst of the ongoing war in Ukraine, even though several times a day they take shelter in the corridors with the haunting sounds of air raid sirens heard all around the town in the Sumy region of the country.

Supported by Christian charity Mercy Projects the center has impacted countless young lives providing therapy and education for those who had been rejected by many institutions who were unable to help them.

GNA reporter Peter Wooding recently visited the center to hear some of the stories of those who have found the center to be like a second home.

Despite countless challenges a special needs children’s centre in Konotop, Ukraine supported by Christian charity Mercy Projects has remained opened for more than 16 years ago. Today the Hearts of Love Center team ministers to the children in the midst of the war. Several times each day during the air raid alerts they calmly take the children to a place of shelter in the corridor.

One of the many young people whose lives have been impacted there is Yana. When she first came as a 7-year-old girl she had spent much of her childhood in hospitals to correct what’s known as an innate anomaly on her right leg. This is her singing worship songs and praying at one of centre’s summer camps in 2012.

Today she is 26 years old, she is married with a little daughter and her husband is serving on the frontlines.

She looks back on how the Hearts of Centre helped her to be the person she is today by providing a place of love and acceptance for her.

Yana:

I really liked the center because I played with other kids drawing. And it was acceptance and encouragement here. It was like a second home.

Another young person whose life has been deeply impacted from coming to the center is Andriy who has microcephaly.

He lives in a one bedroom apartment with his grandmother Lyuba. She shares her gratefulness for the remarkable development she has seen in her grandson who could hardly talk when he first came to the center.

Andriy:

Thank you very much for everything for this center that my grandson can be there because he learnt a lot of things at this center. It’s God because we became a family because it’s our shelter and only God can do this.

And center director Lena says it’s only thanks to God’s help that they continue to help many more young lives like Yana and Andriy.

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