Ukrainian orphans rescued by the generosity of Sunday Mirror readers are thriving in Romania almost one year on.
But all they really want is for the war to end so they can go home.
Aliona, 12, was one of 52 children driven out of her Dnipro orphanage by Russian shelling.
She was taken to safety by charity Hope and Homes for Children – thanks to £84,000 raised by our readers.
Now she wants to join the police when she grows up and is doing well in maths, biology and geography at her Romanian school – and enjoys dancing and gymnastics.
But her dearest wish is to return to Dnipro in central Ukraine.
Aliona said: “I have missed Ukraine all year. Romania is beautiful, but I want to go home.”
Fellow refugee Ilari, 14, added: “I love Dnipro. It was the best place on Earth. We were told coming here would be an adventure and I thought we’d return very quickly. I just want Ukraine to win the war so we can all go back home.”
Ilari’s travel to sanctuary involved a 26-hour journey by bus, train and foot.
He and Aliona live in Northern Romania – supported by Hope and Homes for Children.
We are not revealing their exact location or their full names because they are still at risk from people traffickers.
A mother and her children separated before the war have been reunited.
Olena, 29, had three children taken into care after they were left unsupervised by a babysitter.
Now Sofiia, six, brothers Oleksii, 10, and Artem, eight, are back with mum – and have met their 18-month old sister Zlata for the first time.
But life is tough at their home 80km from Dnipro and Olena relies on food parcels, nappies and medicine provided by the charity.
She said: “It’s hard to put food on the table. We dream of victory and an end to this war.”
Many of the country’s 105,000 orphans were moved out of 700 institutions to stay with relatives ill-prepared to receive them.
Some of the money raised helped provide emergency aid packs, trauma counselling, day centres for disabled children and training for foster parents.
Halyna Postoliuk, the charity’s director in Ukraine, said: “The war has created a child protection emergency.
“They’ve lost their parents, homes and have stopped talking. They hide under a table when they hear loud sounds. An 11-year-old boy’s hair turned grey in an instant.”
Ex-Chief of the Defence Staff and charity patron Lord Dannatt said: “Sunday Mirror readers have been incredibly generous. I hope this continues so that Hope and Homes for Children can keep helping the hidden victims of war.”
- You can donate £10 by texting UKRAINEAPPEAL to 70460
