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Transcript/ScriptUSAGM SHARE
((PLAYBOOK SLUG: UKRAINE CAMP WAR KIDS – Oshchudlyak
HEADLINE: Special summer camp helps Ukrainian kids, teens deal with war trauma
TEASER:
PUBLISHED: 09/xx/2024 at
BYLINE: Omelyan Oshchudlyak
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Lviv, Ukraine
VIDEOGRAPHER: Yuriy Dankevych
VIDEO EDITOR: Yuriy Dankevych
SCRIPT EDITORS: KEnochs; Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, Reuters, AFP, Kids of Ukraine
PLATFORMS: WEB _ TV X RADIO __
TRT:
VID APPROVED BY:
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES:
((PLEASE RETURN TO ANNA RICE AND COPY TO HFR PLEASE))
((INTRO))
[[For the second year in a row, specialized summer camps are being held in Ukraine’s Carpathian Mountains for teens who have witnessed traumatic events during the war. Psychologists here say instead of focusing on the trauma, they are helping these kids find friends and inner strength. Omelyan Oshchudlyak visited one such camp.]]
((NARRATION))
((Mandatory courtesy: Kids of Ukraine))
Mykhailo Dryhval was 11 when he saw the war up close in the city of Kherson, Ukraine, along with his mother and younger sister, Kateryna. On day one of Russia’s invasion, the family took their parrot and hamster
((End courtesy))
and fled to Mykhailo’s grandmother’s house in the city. It was the first time they saw Russian military vehicles.
((Mykhailo Dryhval, Camp Participant)) ((UKR))
"Tanks marked with large Zs. APCs [[armored personnel carriers]] with Russians inside. We didn’t know then how to identify our military. We thought those were Ukrainian soldiers coming to rescue us. We even thought ‘Z’ stood for Zelenskyy. That’s what my mom assumed. So we waved at them. I think our naïvité saved us.”
((NARRATION))
According to the Ukrainian charity foundation Dobrodiy Club, the biggest concern of 73% of Ukrainians ages 13 to 19 is the war. Another 38% of teens say it has become more difficult to make friends during wartime.
((Mandatory courtesy: Kids of Ukraine))
((NARRATION))
So for the second year in a row, SviTy (3) – a project started by the Kids of Ukraine charitable foundation,
((End courtesy))
organized summer camps in Ukraine’s Carpathian Mountains for children ages 12 to 16 suffering from war-related trauma and painful memories. Like 13-year-old Iryna Kulyk, who worries about her father serving in the military.
((Iryna Kulyk, Camp Participant)) ((UKR))
"At first, my dad visited once a week. Then it was once every
((Mandatory courtesy: Kids of Ukraine))
two weeks. Then he couldn’t come for 2 to 3 months. He wakes up at 6 a.m. and messages me, ‘Good morning, darling, have a great day! I love you!’ // He texts
((End courtesy))
me every morning. I always check my phone first thing to see his message."
((NARRATION))
The camps focus on the teens' physical development and mental recovery. Psychologists helped create the eight-day program.
((radio: Kseniya Shumlovych is a psychologist who works at the camp.))
((Kseniya Shumylovych, Psychologist)) ((UKR))
"With adults, psychologists address trauma directly. When working with children, we focus on whatever resources they have and don’t touch upon the trauma; we seek out their strengths. We give them a chance to express themselves. We try to show them we are there for them.”
((radio: Iryna Mazur is a manager at the camp))
((Iryna Mazur, SviTy Carpathian Camp)) ((UKR))
"The main feedback we have from parents is that their children are finding friends here. They’re simply finding their soulmates."
((NARRATION))
((Mandatory courtesy: Kids of Ukraine))
Each Carpathian camp ends with a "vatra" – a traditional large bonfire.
Now that summer is over, the teens are returning to school – and the reality of living in a war-torn country.
((End courtesy))
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Education, one in seven schools in Ukraine has been damaged by Russian shelling.
((Omelyan Oshchudlyak, VOA News, Carpathians, Ukraine))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateSeptember 19, 2024 09:40 EDT
BylineOmelyan Oshchudlyak
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
