Community 

The main activity of “Oselya” is the community of  homeless people who live and work together, run a common household, solve life problems and help those who are poorer than them. Despite the challenges related to the Russian-Ukrainian war, the Community is developing, modernizing, and growing.

For the entire year of 2024, 62 people lived in the Community. During the year, 7 companions signed declarations with a family doctor, 1 companion underwent a surgery and 2 were treated in a hospital, 2 companions were registered as disabled, 7 companions renewed their documents.

In the community, people receive psychological support, and new residents participate in social training – three-month courses that include addiction therapy, personal development training, and the history of the Emmaus movement. In 2024, two social training courses were held. Companions with addiction issues attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

The social hostel of “Oselya” (Lviv, Uhorska St., 2) is home to 8 adults and 3 children – those who have successfully undergone resocialization in the Community.

15 companions of “Oselya” voluntarily or by conscription defend our land from Russian invaders in Armed Forces of Ukraine, 4 companions were demobilized after participating in hostilities.

The war affects our daily life, causes the feelings of uncertainty and anxiety. Among the companions there are many people from cities that are currently being bombed, that are burning, that have been completely destroyed. But we stay together, because in the community we feel this great privilege to be together in difficult times and help those who need our support.

This year, thanks to the help of an anonymous benefactor, we improved the community’s courtyard, and now our community area become even cozier.

Social enterprise: collection of goods

To generate income for the current needs of the Community and solidarity actions for homeless people, “Oselya” runs a social enterprise.

The main activity is the collection of the used goods from the city residents that (clothes, shoes, small household appliances, books, dishes, toys, etc.). We collect goods through 34 containers located at OKKO gas stations and at parishes. A truck makes trips to Lviv residents’ calls for oversized items. This year we had to change the locations of the containers due to robberies and damage to the containers.

In total, we collected about 835,910 kg of things through the container network in 2024. Most of them were reused. They were distributed daily for free to homeless and low-income people at the Support Center (in 2024 – 11,504 distributions), or given out for a charitable donation. The proceeds were used to feed homeless people, provide sanitary and hygienic services. Also, we made 28 humanitarian goods donations  to the following organizations: Unconquered Kharkiv, Volunteer Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine LMGO “Kalyna” and others. We recycle goods that are not reusable. 

113,250 kg of items that we collected cannot be reused or recycled (broken toys, odd or destroyed shoes, worn and dirty clothing, household garbage). The Lviv City Council, through carriers, helps us take this garbage to landfills. This year, almost 20,000 kg less was taken to the landfill from our sorting center than last year, because we began to partially take shoes for repair, as well as sort plastic toys and proceed them for recycling.

Social enterprise: charity stores

Two charity stores are the main source of income for the Community and solidarity actions. Here, for a charitable donation, customers purchase goods donated by others.

The charity store in Vynnyky city is always crowded, because by purchasing an item here, one does three good deeds at once: supports people in need, takes care about the environment, and gets an item for a small donation.

Another charity store, Workshop of Good Deeds, operates in Lviv. It raises funds for the maintenance of the social hostel and for solidarity actions. In September 2024, the Good Deeds Workshop opened in a renovated, enlarged space with a whole bunch of new interesting ideas. Here, art workshops, literary meetings, educational games, English classes for children, health gymnastics for adults, a chess club for adults and children, and meetings with a psychologist are held. During the year, three excursions were organized (Univska Lavra, Lavender Field of Happiness, and Pidhirtsi Castle), and 8 classes with children in Lviv parks.

The participants of our Good Deeds Workshop are children from military or large families, IDPs, relatives of UBD, mothers whose children died in the war, etc. We try our best to create a community where everyone can find a little bit of goodness, peace, and mutual support in the time of war and sorrow. 

We express our sincere gratitude for the financial support for the renovation works to our partners at Emmaus Europe.

Social enterprise: furniture workshop

During 2024, the furniture workshop operated in two basement rooms at Uhorska, 2 Street. It is extremely important that at the end of the year, thanks to the support of our partners from “Emmaus-Europe” and other benefactors, we renovated the workshop and equipped two more workplaces, a restroom, a storage and a carpentry room.

In the workshop, old furniture will continue to get a new life, and magical transformations will take place with clothes and household items. 

In total, in 2024, in the workshop we repaired 153 pieces of furniture (sofas, armchairs, chests of drawers, etc.)

Olesya Sanotska Support Center 

The Olesya Sanotska Support Center is successfully operating and during the year 2,609 people received services there. They were consulted by a social worker and a psychologist; were provided with the hygiene products; received hygienic services (shower, haircut, laundry); received necessary clothes, shoes, and hot meals.

An important achievement is that we have a doctor who sees the people there three times a week. We thank the Red Cross volunteer from the United States, Rebecca Roselia Hinton, the doctors of the “6th City Polyclinic of Lviv”, the Expert Hospital, and the Medical Clinic of the Ukrainian University of Kyiv for the cooperation. Patients received 40 referrals for fluorography and 31 referrals for head lice treatment, necessary medications, and nursing care. In cooperation with the NGO “100% Life”, we screened visitors for tuberculosis, HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis.

At the Support Center, we offer visitors some fun activities: chess and table tennis, art workshops, and movie time with coffee and snacks.

In January, February, and December 2024, the “Emmaus – Oselya” Community participated in a social campaign initiated by the Lviv City Council. Every Friday, a free “Caring Bus” brought people from Lviv city to the Olesya Sanotska Support Center so that they could receive social services. 80 people were assisted by the “Caring bus” in January and February, and by 51 people in December. We express our gratitude to our partners for providing the bus and food for lunch.

During the exhausting war, the Olesya Sanotska Support Center has become a Noah’s Ark, where hundreds of people seek solace and help. The Support Center operated thanks to the Community economic activities and donations.

Street work

During 2024, every Thursday the copanions prepared lunch for a hundred homeless people and distributed it in the city center at 2:00 p.m. (square near the Powder Tower). During street work, we invite people to use the services of the Olesya Sanotska Support Center. In 2024, we made 52 trips.

Throughout the year, Lviv residents reached out to us to learn how they can help homeless people and contributed to the street work. We are happy to be intermediaries between those who want to help and those who need help.

On December 5, 2024, Saint Nicholas visited the homeless to distribute food and gave out 300 gifts.

In 2024, for Christmas and Easter, we invited people in need to our Support Center to celebrate these holidays together.

Membership in the International Emmaus Movement

Since it was founded, Oselya has been a partner of the International Emmaus Movement, which helps the homeless and excluded people in forty countries around the world. In 2010, Oselya became a member of the International Emmaus Movement. We participate meetings of Ukraine – Poland Collective and regional meetings of Emmaus – Europe.

The International Emmaus Movement supports our solidarity actions. This year, Emmaus – Europe supported the renovation of the “Workshop of Good Deeds” and the furniture workshop. The Vice President of Emmaus – Europe Herbert Bitter and the Solidarity Program Manager Emmanuel Rabourdin visited Oselya this summer. They were amazed by the great progress and the work we do to help people in need during the war, and by the well-organized social enterprise. The guests met with the Deputy Mayor of Lviv for Humanitarian Affairs Iryna Kulynich at our Olesya Sanotska Support Center.

During 2024, we received eight trucks with humanitarian aid from “Emmaus Longjumeau” community (France), “Emmaus CH,” the “Punto e.V.” community and other communities from Germany, Finland, and from “Emmaus Westervik.” “Blau-Gelbes Kreuz e.V.” helped us with transportation. We are grateful for the help and have passed it on to those who need it more.

Khrystyna Kornienko, responsible for the charity shop “Oselya” and Olena Demchuk, responsible for the sorting place, visited the “Emmaus Longjumeau” community (France) to exchange experiences and see the work of their social enterprise.

Zoe, a companion from the Swiss community “Emmaus Fribourg”, who came to Ukraine by bike, stayed in our community for more than a month.

In March 2024, the “Poland-Ukraine” collective was held in Annemasse (France). We had a lot of fruitful discussions between the Polish, Latvian, Georgian, French, Swiss, Finnish and Dutch communities. Our community was represented by Natalia Sanotska, responsible for “Emmaus-Oselya” and Hryhoriy Semenchuk, national delegate to “Emmaus” from Ukraine. We analyzed the economic models of the Emmaus communities, discussed the issues at stake during the European Parliament elections, and also talked a lot about the Russian war in Ukraine: the everyday life of Ukrainians, the activities of the Oselya community during the war, and the prospects for the coming years.

We are happy to be heard, understood, and supported in every way by our friends from Emmaus in different countries of Europe.

Leisure and education

Companions and employees of the Oselya participate in trainings, learn to lead a healthy lifestyle, learn about Emmaus ideas. 

This year, the companions had two tours to the dungeons of Lviv, listened to the history of the city while wandering the streets of the central part of Lviv, attended a concert in the Lviv Organ Hall. Thanks to the Danish Refugee Council program, professional trainers provided companions with training in financial literacy, employment, and time management.

Public Relations

Oselya continued its active cooperation with Ukrainian and foreign organizations. During the year, local and foreign media were interested in the activities of Oselya. 

Together with the Barka Mutual Aid Foundation (Poland), we held a conference on social economy and helping people in crisis at the Olesya Sanotska Support Center with the participants from different cities of Ukraine. We exchanged Polish and Ukrainian effective practices in the field of active social and professional reintegration of people in crisis in order to build long-term cooperation between public leaders in Ukraine and abroad in the future.

During the year, Oselya was visited by numerous guests: local government officials, representatives of municipal enterprises and local communities from different parts of Ukraine.

Representatives of women’s public organizations from Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Poltava, Chernihiv and Lviv regions, which are part of the “Call to Action: Local Response 2023-2025” project network visited Oselya. It was part of the project “Social Enterprise: Where to Start”.

The work of “Oselya” is interesting for young people. The students of Vynnyky sanatorium school, who study the “Entrepreneurship” course visited us throughout the year, as well as students of Verkhnobilkivska school  and students of the Dnipro Medical University. The students of Ukrainian Catholic University have their practical training course in Oselya. 

A Book About Community

In 2024, Maryana Sokha’s book “Now We Stand Together,” which draws attention to the problem of homelessness, paints ambiguous portraits of the companions of “Oselya” and demonstrates the power of community, was presented to the readers. 

Presentations were held at America House Lviv, Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv and Sister City Library in Chicago. The book received many positive reviews from readers and literary bloggers and is being sold  at the largest bookstore chain in Ukraine “Ye”.

Donors of “Emmaus – Oselya” in 2024

Dodo Socks, BERTA group, Chystenko, Blyzenko, Shuvar Wholesale Market, Komel LLC, Lvivholod TVC LLC, Yar-step PNVP, Svichado LLC, Hileta H.M., Auchan, Dobra Voda, Getus Mini-market, PJSC Concern Khlibprom, Zakhidkhlib LLC, the Mykhalyna family, Andriy Sanytsky, Natalia Ozhanska, Ida Haeberli and Pius Sialm (Switzerland), Partnerschaft mit Osteuropa e.V.” (Germany) and others.

Warm hearted gratitude to the numerous anonymous donors who transferred funds to our bank account, to all caring people who donated food and different goods.

Partners of “Emmaus-Oselya” in 2024

International Emmaus Movement; Lviv City Council; Lviv City Employment Center; Ukrainian Catholic University; Social Services Center “Dzherelo”; PJSC “Concern Halnaftohaz” and the OKKO gas station network; Maltese Aid Service; Expert Hospital; UCU Medical Clinic; 6th City Polyclinic of Lviv; “Neskoreny Kharkiv”; Volunteer Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine LMGO “Kalyna”; Holding of Emotions “!FEST”; Brewery “Carlsberg Ukraine”.

Parish communities of the Church of St. Archangel Michael, Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Church of the Intercession The Most Holy Theotokos, the Chapel of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Church of St. Clement of the Pope, the Church of the Exaltation of the Holy and Life-giving Cross of the Lord.

Many thanks to all volunteers for their sacrificial work for the benefit of people in need, special thanks to Oksana Kozyna and Antalya Butenko for their regular volunteer work in the hairdressing salon of the Olesya Sanotska Support Center, designer Olha Solovey for master classes in the Workshop of Good Deeds, Ms. Ivona for preparing lunch every Tuesday for visitors to the Support Center, and Lyudmila Tkachuk for her wonderful songs at the solidarity events of “Oselya”.