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Lilia Zoz from Lysychansk, which is occupied by the Russians, in the Luhansk region, is the mother of 10 adopted children. Moreover, she took four of them from the shelter two days before the full-scale war, two more – already during the war. Currently, a large family lives in Volyn.

“Ukrainian Pravda. Life” spoke with Lilia Zoz. The woman told what it’s like to be a single adoptive mother, as well as why she dared to adopt a seriously ill boy who constantly needs medical care.

“I really enjoyed being a mom again”

In her native Lysychansk, which is currently under occupation, Lilia Zoz was a successful entrepreneur, had a large house and a car. That woman admits that when she returned from work to an empty house, she felt lonely.

At the age of over 50, a woman decided to become a foster mother

Her two daughters are already adults and live separately. So, at the age of over 50, a woman decided to become a foster mother.

“I had everything, but I was lonely. For a long time she went to the shelter, visited the children. In the end, she decided to take two girls – native sisters, 7 and 10 years old. I really enjoyed being a mom again“, says Mrs. Lilia.

Two years later, the woman was asked to take a two-year-old girl from the orphanage. Lilia carefully considered this decision, because at that time she had already turned 55 years old, but still agreed.

She says that the first time as a small child was very difficult: she did not eat, did not sleep, was very restless. But over time it passed.

The woman had to teach children elementary and constantly work on their development. Here, Lilia’s education as a primary school teacher came in handy: although she worked in her specialty for a short time, her knowledge remained.

“It so happened that even before the full-scale war, literally in two days, I took four more children from the same family from the shelter. One of them, a 5-year-old boy, – seriously ill. The child is forced to take a handful of pills every day and is often under the supervision of doctors“, says Lilia.

At the beginning of March 2022, the family was forced to leave Lysychansk. The woman says that at that time there was no communication in the city and there were constant explosions, which the children were very afraid of.

The trains did not run because the occupiers destroyed the railroad. There were no organized evacuations either. Volunteers helped Lilia and her children leave. For some time, the family lived in the Lviv region, and then – left for Austria.

“I am so proud that they are so beautiful, and I am their mother, and I have so many of them,” says Lilia.

Both in Lviv and abroad, Ms. Liliya visited medical institutions for the treatment of her 5-year-old adopted son.

“People often turn around when they see many small children with me.”

“All the kids call me mom and I love it. I’m 55 years old, but I’m not complex, although people often turn around when they see so many children running after me and shouting: “Mom!”

I am so proud that they are so beautiful, and I am their mother, and I have so many of them. My youngest child is now four years old, the oldest is 15“, says the woman.

While still living in Austria, Lilia thought about how and where to return to Ukraine. The woman convinces: no matter how good it is abroad, “the heart pulls home”. Then the volunteers found a house for the mother of many children in the village of Ughryniv, in Volyn.

When Lilia returned to the Motherland, she decided to take care of several more children. She learned that the orphans from Lysychansk had been transferred to a shelter in Lviv, and went there. So she became a mother to three more children.

ALL PHOTOS: from the family archive of Lilia Zoz

When asked how a woman manages to manage so many children, Lilia answers:

“I really like it. I really like to cook, I even bake bread myself. I have a lot of time: I don’t work as much in Volyn as in Lysychansk, so I manage everything.

I never once regretted taking them. It is very rare, of course, that nerves fail. Then I sit down and cry. But this also happens in ordinary families.” she says.

The woman shares her dream – to return home to her native Lysychansk. She hopes that her house will survive and she will be able to live there with her extended family.

“I can no longer imagine my life without these children“, Liliya concludes.

Read also: “I always told myself that this was the last time”: the story of a couple from Ternopil Oblast who adopted 17 children

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