School Supplies Bring Big Smiles To 600 Students

After long months of doing their school lessons from home, students in Ukraine couldn't wait to rejoin their classmates and teachers in the classroom. The Pochaiv sponsor site staff were excited too but worried that the sponsored children from the most vulnerable families would not have the means to buy even the basic school supplies they learn effectively with in class or do homework - items such as notebooks, bags, pens, and colored pencils.

Even before the COVID-19 shutdown with its crippling economic impact, parents in Ukraine were already facing the challenges of ballooning costs of necessities such as food and heating. Historically, many parents went abroad in search of work because there is little work in Ukraine. Now, border closures prevented that, too. Across eight communities, Chalice site workers knew of 600 students whose families could not afford adequate school supplies. 

Among them was 10-year-old Nadia. Nadia lives with her two older siblings and her grandmother in a remote village. Their mother suffers from chronic illness and is unable to care for the children. Nadia and her family are tight-knit, and the children enjoy helping their grandmother with the daily chores in their small garden and care for the animals. They earn a little money selling their canned preserves. Most of the work happens in the summer - Nadia and her siblings rise early to get the work done before the heat of the day. They are motivated to get the work done so that their grandmother can buy school supplies for them in September.

But this year, all that changed. Thanks to generous Chalice supporters, Nadia is one of the 600 students who received the Pochaiv site's package of art supplies, a foreign language textbook, and writing utensils.

Nadia received more than enough notebooks, so she shared them with her brother and sister. This gift of supplies not only equipped the students for a bright new year at school but also took the pressure off their grandmother to have earned enough in time. She is among the 900 family members who have received help from these humble supply kits.