Chevrons for the Armed Forces. How an immigrant from occupied Novaya Kakhovka found her vocation in a new city

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“It was unbearable during the occupation. Ukrainians are hunted, tortured and killed there,” says Anastasia Borysova. She is an immigrant from the occupied Kherson Region, the mother of a disabled child, a volunteer who embroiders original chevrons for Ukrainian defenders. The family, together with their two children, lived in Novaya Kakhovka, captured by the Russians, for almost five months. Now their house is not just under occupation – it is destroyed. So the family was sheltered by people in Odessa. The story of strength for new achievements thanks to the kindness of those who care – in the special project “UP. Life” “Hide Your Own”. Shells from “Grady” flew over people’s houses. Nova Kakhovka is located in the Kherson region on the left bank of the Dnieper, only 80 km from Crimea. It is from the Kakhovka Reservoir that water is supplied to the North Crimean Canal, which is why Kakhovka has become one of the main strategic goals of Russia. The city has been under occupation since the first day of the full-scale invasion. “Our house is located closer to the hydroelectric power station, which was seized almost immediately. We saw through the window a huge smoke “mushroom” and the glow from the explosion around 4:30 in the morning on February 24, 2022. Our walls were shaking at that time. At five in the morning over Enemy planes were already circling Nova Kakhovka. In addition, there is a bypass road near our house, and at 9 o’clock we saw Russian military equipment – tanks, armored personnel carriers, up to 300 units in total – begin to enter the city along it. The fighting began actions between the left bank and the right. The Russians covered the right bank with shelling. At 11 o’clock, the occupiers already hung their tricolor rag on the hydroelectric power plant,” 33-year-old Anastasia Borisova tells about the first day of the great war. While seizing Kherson Oblast, the Russians set up their “Hradi” near residential areas and fired shells just above people’s houses, covering themselves with peaceful Ukrainians as a human shield. “There were three military vehicles in front of us, and they were driving along the right bank. It was terrible. Both adults and children were simply hysterical. We were afraid every second that now the house would be hit, and there would be nothing left of us. We hid in in the corridor,” the woman recalls. They were tortured by electric current. Under the occupation, Nova Kakhovka became like the Apocalypse: the Russians looted everything – from shops and gas stations to people’s garages. “They told the locals that they were allegedly looking for weapons. But in fact they took everything they wanted. Where they did not open, they broke down the doors and took everything they could. And what do you say to them? They are armed,” Anastasia says indignantly. Having captured Nova Kakhovka, the Russians began to massacre the local residents. Automatic queues were started on people when they were just walking down the street. They did it not only to intimidate, but they purposefully killed civilians. “I know that there were bodies with gunshot wounds in the morgues. I don’t know the number, but there were definitely those,” the woman says. The Russians organized constant raids to clear the city of unwanted people. Volunteers, partisans, relatives of Ukrainian soldiers – they were all taken “to the basement” and tortured there. “I personally heard how the occupiers shouted to someone on the street through a loudspeaker: “Get out, we know you are here!” An acquaintance told me that her friend was captured and severely beaten. And when he asked them: “For what?” : “Just like that, for prevention!” I also heard about cases when people were tortured with electric currents, people were shot above the head, hair was pulled out in pieces, they were starved to death,” Anastasia recalls the terrible events. Residents of Novokakhov, whom the Russians summoned for questioning, later said that they heard frantic human screams from the torture chambers set up by the occupiers. Because of the war, Anastasia lost a friend – he needed treatment for cancer. However, it was impossible to find the necessary medicine under the occupation, so the man died. As of 2020, 45,000 people lived in Nova Kakhovka. Now there remains about 10%. It was extremely difficult to survive in the occupation – there was no security, no peace, no food. “I was given barbecue as a gift for my birthday in May 2022. Because it was impossible to buy something more normal in stores. And the meat cost about 300 hryvnias per kilogram. All products were brought to us from Crimea, and they were of extremely low quality or expired . You open a pack of cookies that costs as much as an airplane wing, and it also smells musty. That is, the occupiers understood that we had no choice, so we would eat the spoiled ones. People were often poisoned by that abomination,” says Anastasia Borisova. Volunteering of the mother of a child with a disability The immigrant from Novaya Kakhovka calls volunteering her vocation, which she has been doing for over five years. And her son encouraged her to do so. The fact is that Anastasia is the mother of a special child. 12-year-old Vitaliy has a rare disease – cat cry syndrome, or in scientific language – Lejeune syndrome. It is associated with the absence of part 5 of the chromosome. Children with this disease usually have a cry similar to a cat’s cry. There are only about 20 such diagnoses in all of Ukraine. So the woman had practically nowhere to get information about child care. She looked for everything on her own, reading specific literature and talking to people with similar experiences. It took years to acquire new knowledge and skills and to adapt to a special life. Having understood the difficulties faced by families of children with disabilities, Anastasia decided to help these people. “Some need expensive rehabilitation, others need medicine from abroad. Not everyone can meet these needs on their own. So we organized fairs where we sold our works: paintings, jewelry, sweets, and thus collected funds. We also organized holidays with gifts and colorful balls to give children joyful emotions. Such simple things inspire mothers to new achievements,” the woman enthusiastically shares. A full-scale invasion prevented Anastasia from implementing an important social project – to create an embroidered emblem for the mother of a special child. According to her, this would allow society to become more inclusive. “Such emblems could be placed, say, on a backpack. And, for example, if a child behaves unusually in line at a supermarket – screams or fights – then this does not mean that the mother did not raise this child badly. Perhaps it is a child with special health conditions “I. And a suitable sign would help people to understand this and be tolerant. It is also very important to convey to the families of children with disabilities that we are not alone, there are many of us, and we are treated with love!” – Anastasia is convinced. The Borysovs’ son needs regular rehabilitation throughout his life, because cat cry syndrome is characterized by developmental delay. 10-day rehabilitation costs from 15 to 30 thousand hryvnias, and it must be done every three months. “Vitaly is 12 years old, but his development level is for 11 months. He doesn’t walk, doesn’t talk, doesn’t show where he hurts, can choke on food or any other object. So you need to be near him every second,” says the mother . A few years ago, the Borisovs decided to have a second child. That’s how Vitaliy got a sister Milan, who is already four years old, and who inspires his older brother to new achievements. “Milana loves her brother so much – just endlessly. She hugs him, watches over him, understands him sometimes even better than we do. And thanks to her sister, Vitaliy began to develop more actively – he repeats everything after her and acquires new skills,” Anastasia shares. Own apartment destroyed Leaving occupied Novaya Kakhovka was extremely difficult. Sometimes people were kept at checkpoints for two weeks. “An acquaintance told me that while she was waiting in line, six women had time to give birth,” the woman recounts. Anastasia Borysova, along with her husband Oleksiy and two children, were evacuated on July 10. And they did it in a very timely manner. Because two days later, their home was destroyed by an explosive wave from a detonated ammunition depot of the Russians. “The windows and doors were broken in the apartment, household appliances and furniture were damaged. It is impossible to live there now, it needs major repairs,” says Anastasia. So now the family from Novaya Kakhovka lives in Odesa. Lived for free in a hostel for several weeks. And then a caring local resident noticed them and offered to rent them an apartment. Embroidered chevrons for the Armed Forces Challenges of fate pushed Anastasia to volunteer even more. At first, she wove camouflage nets and made trench candles. And now he embroiders original chevrons for the military for free. The migrant woman is helped by her mother and brother. The embroidery depicts a custom drawing: the coat of arms of the native city, “Good evening, we are from Ukraine!”, the symbol of the Kherson region, and everything the soul desires. About 10 chevrons are made per day. But somehow they set their own record – 16 embroideries. “I dream of making embroidery my life’s work, because I get a lot of pleasure from the process. In order to do it professionally, you need an industrial embroidery machine. But I don’t have such funds – which is about 350 thousand hryvnias. I am currently applying to various funds for purchase of equipment, but I haven’t received help yet. I plan to open a business and try to win a grant,” the displaced woman shares. Why Anastasia is especially happy is the results of her son’s rehabilitation, which he is achieving in Odessa. For 12 years, Vitaly could take a maximum of 20 steps in a row. And now his result is impressive – about 400 steps! So the boy can already go up and meet his mother coming home and give her a hug. “Nowadays, we see our son’s progress almost every day. This is something incredible! For comparison, Vitaly started to hold his head at the age of two, sat up at the age of five, started to crawl at the age of seven. For us, each of his achievements feels as if he is in space has flown. So today’s success inspires hope!”, the woman says with tears in her eyes. Anyone who wants to help in the rehabilitation of Vitaliy, or with materials for chevrons for our defenders, can send a donation to the card of Anastasia Borisova – 4149499161829211. *** On the website “Prykhystok” caring Ukrainians can offer housing for displaced persons by posting a corresponding ad. Therefore, IDPs can find temporary shelter in any region of Ukraine or abroad, for a few days or for a longer period. The filter system will help you easily choose the option that meets your criteria and quickly contact the owner. The site works in 40 languages. This is a completely volunteer initiative. It was launched on the first day of the full-scale invasion by People’s Deputy of Ukraine Halyna Yanchenko. Later, the “Shelter” program received state support. Homeowners who sheltered displaced persons receive compensation from the state for the payment of communal services. Victoria Yaryzhko, specially for “UP. Life”

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