"In order not to live in separation and constant waiting, in 2015 we moved from our native Kremenchuk to Mariupol... We hoped for a long and happy life together..."

We hoped for a happy life

She is a psychologist, psychotherapist, associate professor of the Department of General and Clinical Psychology of the Precarpathian National University named after V. Stefanyka. Since 2014, she has been a coordinator of international projects and an instructor on psychosocial support of the population in conditions of war and crisis, she has collaborated with the Swedish Civil Defense Union, the Danish Red Cross and Red Crescent Society, the OSCE.

The children cried almost all

The woman recalls how she took her daughter out after the release of Chuguyev, how warmly her family was greeted by the residents of Germany when they sought shelter there.

We didn't come back

He is a private entrepreneur, a resident of one of the villages in southern Ukraine. The occupiers persecuted the man because he helped our defenders during the anti-terrorist operation.

I was hiding

The "Stories of the Strong" project shares fragments of Oleg's works about what the author and his brothers saw and experienced.

War takes the best

He is an entrepreneur and volunteer from Kamianets-Podilskyi, the initiator and founder of a number of charity projects for displaced children.

I wanted to take care

The woman recalls: "... the bread from the store counters was almost the first to disappear. We had a little of it in reserve, we ate it dry. So when later volunteers brought bread to our house and distributed it for free, my mother hugged that loaf and cried with happiness..."

My dear native Kharkiv...

"I was one of those few Ukrainians who believed that all putin's statements were a bluff, a political game, that Russia would come to its senses and not attack... It turned out that we were bitterly mistaken," says Olesya Shtefan, sharing her memories for "History of the Strong ".

We were sorely mistaken

"On the eve of his death, as if anticipating disaster, the man sent me a message: "If something happens to me, don't let anyone hurt you, and the children too."

I will never see again

Starting her story for "History of the Strong", Olena Gretska from the Kherson region recalls how three days before the war she returned with her family from vacation.

Explosions were heard

Caring about the future of the children, not wanting them to grow up in the space of enemy propaganda, the family decided to evacuate.

The longest day of my life

Iryna tells why she decided to evacuate the city, where she managed to find shelter, what she does today and how her son's fate turned out.

I felt bad..

&quot;I felt that something was going to happen... Three days before the war, my calm, gentle, kind cats Masya and Murik seemed to go crazy: they became anxious and aggressive,&quot; Iryna Skibina recalls, beginning her story for &quot;History of the Strong.&quot; She is a teacher from Stary Saltov, Kharkiv region, a musician and a poet.

Iryna

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&quot;The morning of February 24 came... I woke up at 4:25 a.m. because it started to roar loudly somewhere... I went out to the balcony - it was burning in the distance, like a big fire. I didn&#39;t wake my son at first, I think - the Russian border was nearby, their military exercises were there. So, maybe our Armed Forces decided to conduct their own to show that they are ready to defend themselves,&quot; the woman recalls.

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February 22, 4:25

&quot;Once I went to the kitchen to cook dinner, and when I stood, I saw that it was already flying to our neighborhood. It was a real hell! Shells and bombs hit industrial, commercial, educational facilities, and residential buildings. Everything around was burning and shuddering, as if under the time of the earthquake. The police arrived, the wounded and the dead were taken out of the ruins. Something terrible was happening!&quot;

I felt bad..

Teacher from Stary Saltov

February 22, 4:25

Everything around was on fire