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What to do when a hall is too small for all the expected guests at Christmas? Our team simply ran the programme three times: The party for the youngest children began at 11 a.m., and the dance and singing performance took place a second and third time at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Around 200 Ukrainians, more than half of them children, participated in the event. Valmez4Shelter paid for the cold buffet and a small gift for the children.

Valmez4Shelter ran an information stand twice during the Advent celebrations at the Christmas bazaar organised by the Reformed Church of Gundeldingen-Bruderholz. We provided information about our project and attracted a number of new interested parties. The sale of homemade items raised several hundred Swiss francs. Finally, we made contact with a foundation that promised us 5,000 Swiss francs for the coming year.

Children from Ukraine who did not yet learn how to write in Ukrainian, a new teacher hired by Valmez4Shelter will get them started. The students speak Ukrainian and are learning Czech in Valmez, but they only learn to write Ukrainian if their parents teach them. Often, mothers who work full-time lack the time and energy to do so. Inna B. is the new teacher who will help the children to write Ukrainian in a playful way for 90 minutes, twice a week. This will also increase their chances of making a fresh start when they return home after the war.

Anastasiia Hresko runs the Domecek nursery funded by Valmez4Shelter. Back in Ukraine, the trained nursery school teacher was a professional hairdresser. In the evenings, after work at the nursery, she volunteers as a hairdresser helping elderly people getting a haircut. Many senior citizens do not have the money to visit a hair salon.

The summer weather, so far, has been mixed in the Czech Republic. High temperatures were followed by heavy rainfall. Because it is difficult to meet outdoors in this weather, our colleague Anna Gavrylenko arranged for Ukrainian teenagers to use a room at the Domeček community centre. The teenagers meet there once a week. Valmez4Shelter provides drinks and snacks, helping to keep the mood light.

Almost every day, new people arrive in Valmez, assigned to the town by the Czech central refugee centre. Initially, the Ukrainian refugees live in one of three emergency shelters. After they find an affordable flat, their room at the centre becomes vacant. However, there is usually not enough time for the city to do a thorough cleaning. Hanna P., originally from Kharkiv, has been living in the ‘Stadion’ hostel for three years. She volunteers to make sure that the new arrivals find a clean room. Valmez4Shelter thanked Hanna P. for her initiative with 100 Swiss francs and a box of Swiss chocolates.

The green countryside around Valašské Meziříčí (Valmez) is a wonderful place to explore by bike. Valmez4Shelter has twelve bicycles, which are used by a group every Saturday or Sunday for bike tours. Our team has made the bikes roadworthy again after the long winter break.

The Valmez4Shelter 2024 annual report looks back on an eventful year. Once again, we provided start-up assistance to around 100 new arrivals, organised numerous leisure activities and offered a place in day care to a total of 18 preschool children. The annual report also introduces four Ukrainians living in Valmez. The publication can be downloaded here.

March 8 – International Women's Day – is traditionally a big celebration for women in Ukraine. Our team booked a free venue in the city, while Valmez4Shelter contributed 200 francs for food and drinks to celebrate the day. Events like this are a highlight for the Ukrainian refugees.

Valmez4Shelter supporters come up with great ideas to raise money for our project: A friend in Frankfurt loves to cook (and is good at it!). So she invited friends and family to a Chinese New Year dinner. The chef asked them not to bring a gift but to make a donation to Valmez4Shelter – and raised the equivalent of 400 francs for the association.

Most of the people arriving in Valmez are mothers with children. However, the regional reception centre also regularly refers individuals to the city. At the beginning of the year, three elderly women arrived who had each fled on their own and had practically no cash. Valmez4Shelter helped them find an accommodation, supported them with registration and paid a starting allowance of 150 euros for the first ten days. Our team also organises a Sunday Café where people can meet other Ukrainian refugees to make contacts and reach out for support.

Our coordinator Galina Kubalska and our psychologist Anna Gavrylenko are employed half by Valmez4Shelter and half by the town of Valmez. In December, our coordinator Marek Irgl and the two of them, were invited to present their work to the city council. Critical voices had demanded that Anna's and Galina's wages to be cut from the next city budget. The three prepared well and showed how important and how much needed their work is. The Valmez city council thanked the delegation with a warm applause – and extended the employment contracts.

Olomouc is a city about 50 kilometres northwest of Valašské-Meziříčí (Valmez) and about five times larger than Valdez. Otto Erich Heynau (1911–1971) came from Olomouc. He was Jewish on his mother's side. His grandfather owned a company in Olomouc. When Hitler annexed Moravia and Bohemia in 1939, Heynau decided to not return to Olomouc and instead settled in Switzerland. In his will, he stipulated that a foundation be set up to help refugees, in view of his own refugee biography. The Otto Erich Heynau Foundation will be supporting the work of Valmez4Shelter in 2025 and 2026 with 10,000 francs each year. Via a Swiss foundation, Olomouc is now helping Ukrainian refugees in Valmez.

Swiss Members of the Valmez4Shelter board travelled to Valmez for five days in November. They conducted the annual employee appraisals and lead discussions. The delegation also met with the heads of the two properties that house the two day-care centres. Further meetings were held with the mayor's secretary, the Czech teacher and the head of the public library. 

Laptops are indispensable for many Ukrainian refugees. They are crucial for work, for school or for keeping in touch with family and friends in Ukraine and other countries. Valmez4Shelter has given away around 50 laptops this year to refugees who could not afford them. We receive the used devices as donations or buy them at a low cost. After a check and reinstallation, we hand them over in exchange for a receipt.g ab.

Nine kilometres from the city centre Valmez is Podlesí, one of the city's three reception centres. Valmez4Shelter is trying to help overcome the isolation of the 80 refugees who are living here. Every other week, our weekly cooking class for children and teenagers takes place in Podlesí. Together with the private owner of the hostel, we have purchased three sofa sets. The sofas create a meeting point for older people, who spend most of their day in the hostel.

The Valmez4Shelter association appeared in the autumn issue of «Mozaik». This Basel neighbourhood newspaper has a print run of 26,000 copies. The autumn focus had the subject «Violence».

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Inline skating is extremely popular among young Ukrainians. Valmez4Shelter collected over 30 pairs of used inline skates plus crash protectors in various sizes and sent them to Valmez. A young Ukrainian skater helps to train beginner skaters. The group practices in a large parking lot, of course using helmets, knee pads, shin and wrist guards, and other protection. There is usually a snack afterwards.

The Czech language is a prerequisite to find professional jobs. However, official Czech courses are often overcrowded, which hinders rapid progress. We have therefore supported seven young adults who are particularly motivated. During the three months of June, July and August, they took individual or small group lessons with our Czech teacher Marie Novotná. Afterwards, they will be well qualified to participate in higher-level language courses.

The Valmez refugee accommodation can feel very cramped due to many people sharing a small space. To compensate, Valmez4Shelter bought a table tennis set and a foosball table. Both are second-hand and cost the equivalent of CHF 250 each. They were installed at the "Stadium" refugee accommodation and have been highly appreciated by its users. Valmez4Shelter is working on more funding to purchase leisure equipment for two other accommodation centres.

Since March, a Ukrainian professional football player, who lives in the Czech Republic, has been coaching a dozen youngsters. The group usually meets for four hours on Saturday or Sunday, depending on weather conditions and field availability. Valmez4Shelter covers the coach's modest monthly salary and paid for footballs and coloured team shirts.

On 20 April, five Ukrainian musicians performed in Basel's Predigerkirche (Preacher’s Church). About 140 guests enjoyed the unique atmosphere made of both classical music and Ukrainian folklore. Over CHF 4,000 were collected for Valmez4Shelter, with additional donations made before and after the concert.

The Valmez4Shelter association published its 2023 annual report. The document showcases the association's various activities, such as emergency aid and job search support and the wide range of mental health services. The publication can be downloaded here and includes the financial statement.

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Ukrainian artists will perform for a charity concert for Ukrainian refugees: On Saturday, April 20th, Valmez4Shelter organized a concert at the Predigerkirche in Basel. Donations will go to Ukrainian refugees in Valmez. Six Ukrainian musicians who live in Switzerland will play music and sing ranging from classic to folk.

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The municipal library in Valmez has been stocking Ukrainian books for several months now, and they are in great demand. Thanks to the Valmez4Shelter initiative, the range of Ukrainian literature will be greatly expanded. We are also planning to organise a small information event on different topics for refugees every few weeks in the evenings in the local library.

The new Masaryk daycare centre has gotten off to a good start, with twelve children ages one to four being looked after from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., even during the school holidays. This allows their parents to pursue gainful employment. Valmez4Shelter paid a third of the renovation costs, about CHF 10,000, for the city to set up this daycare centre. Support from a foreign non-governmental organisation is unusual in the Czech Republic. So the regional TV station "Regionální Televize CZ" reported on the daycare centre and Valmez4Shelter.

After the opening of the new Masaryk daycare centre, the children and the two previous teachers have also moved. Six toddlers up to the age of three are now being looked after on the premises of the vacant Domecek daycare centre, allowing their parents to work. Valmez4Shelter recruited Anastasiia Fedchuk, herself a mother of a toddler, as the daycare centre manager. Anastasiia enjoys painting and has already decorated the after-school centre with a mural last autumn.

Valmez4Shelter opened a second daycare centre at the beginning of December. The centre is located in the Masaryk municipal school building. The renovation took almost a year and was possible thanks to the donations collected by the association Valmez4Shelter. On December 11, a delegation from the association handed a check to the mayor of Valmez, Robert Stržínek, with the value of 10,000 euros. The new daycare centre welcomed twelve children aged up to four years old. Their parents can now pursue employment during the hours when their children are well taken care of.

Valmez4Shelter has been running the "Domecek" daycare centre in Valmez since June 2022. The premises are provided by the town of Valmez. Valmez4Shelter pays the salaries of the two teachers, Katerina Osokina and Liliia Kosova. Twelve children of pre-school age are participating in the program on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. During the day, they children eat snacks and lunch. The childcare centre makes it possible for parents to go work during daytime hours. A short video, filmed by the "Domecek" guitar teacher Mykola Barabash, gives an impression of everyday life at the centre.

At the end of October, a group of 52 Ukrainians from Valmez set off on a bus tour to explore three caves; the Punkva, the Balcarka and the Kateřinská caves. The Punkva caves were accessed by boat, and in the Balcarka caves the visitors participated in a detailed geological tour. In the Kateřinská caves they learned how their ancestors built and used the caves. After the excursion to the caves, the travellers took a hike in the nearby mountains. This day trip was made possible thanks to the subsidies provided by Valemz4Shelter. The association covered the cost of admission for the children and young adults and part of the costs for the driver. The participants enjoyed the change of scenery and the opportunity to get to know the beauty of their host country.
 

The days are getting shorter but for many Ukrainian children and young people who have fled the war zone the weekends appear long. To counter this unrestful time, Valmez4Shelter is offering a cooking course for 15 children. The course started in mid-October and is under the guidance of two volunteer chefs. The participants prepare a meal, learn to cook, and spend several hours in a happy community. By the way, the children decide which dish they cook beforehand. For this course, the group is using the kitchen of the Domecek house. Valmez4Shelter covers the costs for the food of about 50 Swiss francs per course.

The Freie Gemeinschaftsbank Foundation (Free Community Bank) in Basel has been supporting the Valmez4Shelter association with generous monthly grants, starting in 2022. This donation covers the salaries for the teachers of the Domecek after-school program in Valmez. Now the president of the association, Pieter Poldervaart, followed an invitation to present the project. At the annual festival of the FGB Foundation on October 7 in Basel, he talked about the project in detail. He also showed a short video created by the team of teachers at the Domecek nursery school.

The Czech Republic changed its social benefits program for refugees from Ukraine, starting on July 1. The previously paid monthly benefits were limited to 150 days and are now reduced to the equivalent of 184 Francs per person. Subsidies for housing amounting to 120 Francs will now only be paid to children up to 18 years old, their mothers, students at Czech universities, people with disabilities or over the age of 64 years. Those who are employed will no longer receive any subsidies, regardless of their earnings.

This will also impact the salaries and monthly allowance of our two after-school teachers. In order to adjust the salaries to the new framework conditions, Valmez4Shelter will introduce moderate parental contributions in the after-school program "Domeček", starting in September. The same will apply to our second nursery school "Masaryk", which is scheduled to open in November.

Gebana is a Swiss company that offers direct sales of produce, connecting the farmer with the consumer. Among the list of organic and fairly grown produce are cashews and almonds, dried fruits such as mango and dates, but also fresh fruit such as oranges or local vegetables.

After Russia started the war against Ukraine in February 2022, the company decided to stop selling the only Russian product in the Gebana inventory, cedar nuts. The proceeds of the goods still in stock were to go to projects supporting Ukrainian refugees. Valmez4Shelter applied in May 2022 and was chosen by Gebana as one of the projects. After Gebana sold the last Russian cedar nuts, we received a donation of over 2000 Swiss Francs from Gebana. We all very much appreciate the support!

Speaking the local language is crucial when arriving in a new country, and the refugees in Valmez are well aware of that. In the city of Valmez are various offers for Czech language classes. However, the quality is not always satisfactory, and classes are often hard to schedule for people who work.

To overcome this burden, Valmez4Shelter hired the Czech teacher Lenka Venerová who led an intensive course during the summer holidays. Every day from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., a dozen Ukrainians studied Czech intensively for a week. "The teacher and participants were enthusiastic, everyone was well prepared, and the students made remarkable progress", says our coordinator Marek Irgl. Valmez4Shelter covered the costs for wages, travel and materials totalling almost 600 Swiss Francs. The course will be continued from mid-September, twice a week for two hours in the evening.

Summer has arrived in the Czech Republic. The town of Valmez has a large, modern outdoor swimming pool. Valmez4Shelter was able to negotiate with the operators to lower the entrance fees by 50 percent for refugee families. For a deposit, the association is offering the children and young adults a wristband with 30 individual tickets each. The wristband is transferable and can also be used by friends or parents. At the end of the season, Valmez4Shelter will refund unused tickets. So far, about 100 of these wristbands have been handed out. In the picture in the front is our psychologist Anna.

45 children happily spent eventful holidays at the Croatian coast. Most of them were out of town for the first time since fleeing to Valmez. Many of them experienced a vacation at the sea for the first time. Valmez4Shelter covered half of the travel costs, the other half was paid by the parents. Galina, Anna, Katharina and Liliia travelled along with the children on the ten-days trip. Every day, the children woke up at 7 a.m. and spent the day being busy with sports, games and excursions. Due to the high demand, Valmez4Shelter will organise a third and final trip for 22 children to travel to the Adriatic Sea at the end of July. We will take advantage of pre-season lower costs making the trips more affordable.

Olga Kozachuk, 64, comes from Korosten, a town 120 km Kiev. Olga fled to Valmez as soon as the war broke out. She has friends in town, while her son and daughter live in Prague. Her dream is to return to Ukraine. Since the opening of the Domeček kindergarten in the summer 2022, Olga has been cooking lunch for the twelve children and the kindergarten teacher five times a week. She only charges the parents the costs for the food and donates her cooking service. Since May 2023, Valmez4Shelter pays Olga a small monthly compensation for her work.

Mykola Barabash, 18, is a student of architecture at the University of Odessa, currently studying only online. As a refugee, he lives in Valmez and has started giving free guitar lessons to young people. Starting in May, Valmez4Shelter has been paying Mykola a monthly compensation for his lessons. His class is now counting six students who each received a guitar donated to Valmez4Shelter. Mykola and his students have already performed at small festivals in Valmez.

At the beginning of May, an assistant teacher was added to our kindergarten team. From now on, two teachers are taking care of twelve children between the hours from 7 am to 4 pm. Here is the complete team (from left to right): Mykola Barabash (guitar teacher), Katarina Osokina (kindergarten teacher), Liliia Kosova (kindergarten assistant), Galina Kubalska (coordinator), Anna Havrilenko (psychologist), Jana Irglova (coordinator), Marek Irgl (coordinator).

Our staff members Anna and Galina regularly go on outings with interested children and young people in the afternoon or on weekends, often by bike. When the weather is bad, they organise activities indoors. This time, about 15 children attended a pottery workshop. During several afternoons, the children worked on vessels and other objects. Later on they were fired and finally painted. The children enjoy this creative experience.

A delegation of the board of Valmez4Shelter visited Valašské Meziříčí in early April. There were talks with the coordinator Galina Kubalska, the psychologist Anna Havrilenko and the kindergarten teacher Katarina Osokina in the existing kindergarten “Domeček”. Furthermore, we visited the soon-to-be-completed second kindergarten "Masaryk" and heard about the bicycle rental system. Valmez4Shelter finances four bicycles for this purpose. We also attended a dance performance by Ukrainian children. Finally, we had a meeting with the mayor of Valmez, Robert Strzinek. He thanked us for the support for Valmez4Shelter. As always, we will continue to cooperate with the city in our projects wherever possible. For example, both the kindergarten "Domeček" and the kindergarten “Masaryk” are offered free rent on city properties. A photo documentation on the subject is available here.

Most of the Ukrainian refugee children and young people live in very cramped conditions, which is why meaningful leisure activities are a focus of Valmez4Shelter. During the winter, we purchased eight pairs of skates that were offered as free rentals. At the end of the season, the sports equipment is stored for the next winter. For the summer season, we offer free bicycle rentals: Valmez4Shelter finances four of the 15 bicycles. The local bike store offers the two-wheelers at a discount and does minor repairs free of charge. In addition, Galina Kubalska and Anna Havrilenko organize bike trips. Children and young adults can participate free of charge.

The dance and singing performance of 17 children together in front of a wall with a projection of images and a video presentation, which took place on February 28 in Valašské Meziříčí, was very moving and brought tears to many faces. More than 50 Czech guests came, representatives of the town hall, the mayor of the village, also from school organizations, authorities, charities and an important local businessman, all those who helped refugees in our region in the past year. About 20 Ukrainians were present with them, helping with the organization and preparation of the evening, but at the same time having fun with others. Typical Ukrainian food - homemade bread, borscht, pigeons (golubki) and many others was very tasty, people laughed and enjoyed the rare moments. But it was not a meeting without the shadow of the events taking place in Ukraine - there was also sadness in the air. But the purpose of thanking and getting to know each other was completely fulfilled. Valmez4Shelter covered most of the cost of the food.

The local therapist Anna Gavrilenko, a refugee in Valmez, is offering therapy sessions for children and adults from Ukraine. We are currently planning how our association Valmez4Shelter can help provide reliable support for mental health services.

The tax administration Basel-Stadt approved the tax-exempt status for the Valmez4Shelter association. Donations starting at 100 Swiss francs can now be deducted from your tax returns. For a copy of the approval letter you can go to “Downloads”.

We purchased eight pairs of ice skates that will be offered to children as free rentals. Ice skating is very popular in Ukraine and the Czech Republic. Galina Kubalska, our contact person with the refugee families, regularly visits the ice rink in Valmez with a group of children.

We sent ten more laptops to Valmez for refugees who are in need of an electronic device.

The website valmez4shelter.ch went live.

In our Fifth Newsletter, we informed about the current situation in Valmez, the needs of the Ukrainian refugees (rising energy prices), and upcoming projects.

Starting June 2022, the Swiss Foundation of the Freie Gemeinschaftsbank (Free Common Bank) has been donating € 1,000 every month to valmez4shelter. In October, the bank agreed to extend its monthly donation until further notice.

Entire district of Vsetin: 3221 Ukrainian refugees
City of Valmez: 1014 Ukrainian refugees

After the Ukrainian army recaptured areas of its territory in September, the Russian army responded with heavy shelling of the civilian infrastructure. These heavy bombardments of the main cities by the Russian Army caused civilians to leave the areas under attack, and the number of Ukrainian refugees arriving in Valmez increased again.

Entire district of Vsetin/Czech Republic: 2746 Ukrainian refugees
City of Valmez: 815 Ukrainian refugees

In order to seek and receive financial donations from Swiss foundations, parishes and other institutional donors, we founded the association Valmez4Shelter with an address in Basel/Switzerland. The bylaws can be found here.

The number of Ukrainian refugees in the Czech county Vsetin, near the Slovakian border, is stable. Some Ukrainian families decided to return home, and new refugees from other war zones arrived. But the families who decided to stay want to work. Valmez4Shelter finances a training and certification program to enter the workforce for Ukrainian refugees, mainly women, to take on not only unskilled jobs but also qualified positions. Simultaneously, the city is setting up a nursery school for children from refugee families. The two groups with Ukrainian children are well attended, but some of the children are traumatized and need trauma therapy. Valmez4Shelter finances the wages of one assistant teacher, who works in addition to the lead teacher in the group. In the summer of 2022, Valmez4Shelter helped finance a three-day trip for Ukrainian children to Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic. We also made contributions towards the fees for summer camps for Ukrainian children.

The Foundation of the Swiss Freie Gemeinschaftsbank (Free Common Bank) responded to our application and committed to a monthly donation of € 1,000, limited to six months. The money is used to finance the wages of a teaching assistant in the public nursery school for the Ukraine refugees.

Some of those who fled in the first weeks of the war have returned to the liberated or safe areas in Ukraine. On the other hand, new people are arriving coming from other war zones and need to be equipped with essential items. Valmez4Shelter offers newly arriving refugees € 200 in cash to buy urgently needed items. The city of Valmez pays out € 200 per adult which does not cover a set of clothes and hygiene articles for a whole family. Two dozen of the adults have found jobs in Valmez. The main problem is still finding sustainable housing because available apartments are already very limited. In the meantime, € 33,000 of donations have been raised by supporters of Valmez4Shelter in Switzerland and worldwide. The money was spent on mattresses and bedding (€ 7,900), renovating an apartment for a refugee family (€ 1,240) and for medically prescribed glasses for a young girl (€ 1,150). By early May, the third month into the war, 800 Ukrainian refugees are living in Valmez.

A major wholesaler responded positively to our request and donated 480 adult's and 480 children’s toothbrushes. Supporters at Valmez4Shelter in Switzerland picked up the goods, repackaged them and shipped them by postal service to Valmez. Toothbrushes are relatively expensive in the Czech Republic, so this gift relieved the refugees' tight budget. The donations were distributed among the refugees in their shelters and in a jewelry shop that is owned by a friend of the Valmez volunteers committee that welcomes the arriving refugees. A handwritten poster on the shop window invites Ukrainian families to pick up their arrival packages.

A St. Gallen family organized a lunch sale at the local school offering baked goods, local specialties, and other homemade products and donated the proceeds of 4,200 CHF for the refugees in Valmez.

After the first newsletter was distributed by Pieter, donations of € 14,000 have been received. The Czech volunteers in Valmez use the money to buy new clothes, hygiene products, mobile phone credits and school supplies for the children of arriving refugee families. More expensive purchases are strollers for babies and medicine for refugees with health problems such as diabetes. Important items are mattresses and bedding for temporary accommodation, often two to four people are sharing one room and several rooms share one bathroom per floor. The number of people seeking protection in Valmez since Russia started the war against Ukraine has increased to 600.

We got in touch with our longtime friends Jana and Marek Irgl in Valmez. The small town with 22,000 residents is located in the Eastern Czech Republic on the Slovakian border and is known for its chemical industry, production of dairy products and meat processing. Valmez is also an important railway junction and the first express train stop for trains coming from Slovakia. As a result, just within two weeks after Russia started the war on Ukraine 100 Ukrainians arrived seeking shelter. They are accommodated in simple hotels or invited to stay with Czech families. Later on, mass shelters were opened by the town’s government, such as the locker rooms at the sports stadium. After hearing about the dire situation, a group of Swiss friends started sending the first monetary donations to longtime friends, Marek and Jana. The amount of Swiss donations grew rapidly within a short time and is quickly transferred to Jana and Marek’s private bank account. Marek and Jana give frequent reports about incoming donations, money spent, and other urgent needs.