Our Story

The children of employees of Metinvest's Kryvyi Rih enterprises went to Zakarpattia to take a psychological break and recover. This is the second session this summer. After the first one, the holidaymakers share their impressions at home, look through the latest photos and communicate with new friends. The trips for children of Metinvest employees affected by the war are organised as part of the Strong Generation Camp - Future psychological rehabilitation programme. The programme was launched as part of the Saving Lives humanitarian initiative. Metinvest will allocate about UAH 9 million for the rehabilitation of young Ukrainians.

Those who see the Carpathians for the first time fall in love with them forever. Those who have already admired the majestic mountain ranges dream of returning to them again and again. In the unique parts of Ukraine along the Carpathians, everything heals - the scenery, the air, the mineral waters, the rich culture and spirituality of the people. People always come here for health and tranquillity. It is here that Metinvest has organised a health improvement programme to provide psychological support to the children of its employees who have experienced the war first-hand.

The other day, a group of children accompanied by responsible adults travelled by train to Lviv and from there to Zakarpattia. They are the participants of the second session to the health camp located near Lake Synevyr. The noisy and cheerful boys and girls were seen off by their excited parents. The Petrenko family came together to support their favourite Veronika. Her dad, Viktor Petrenko, is an electrician at Ore Beneficiation Plant #2 of Ingulets GOK and is currently defending Ukraine in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The mother Tetiana believes that an interesting trip will help to comfort her daughter and fill her summer with positive emotions. Anastasia Gudym, the wife of Dmitro Gudym, a driver at mining transport shop #1 of Northern GOK, who is currently defending the country from the enemy, also sent her daughter Milana to the camp.

"We were very excited when we received the offer of a holiday for our child," the mother says. "Milana is emotional, impressionable and has a hard time with every air alert, so the opportunity to leave the city for a more or less peaceful place made us happy. It's the first time she's been away from us for so long, it's her first camp, so of course we're worried. From the first day, I've been getting positive feedback from her: she likes everything, she's made friends, the counsellors are great. On the way, the children visited the zoo, so they are not bored there. It's a good opportunity to communicate, find friends, learn something new, see something, because due to the war, you can't go anywhere much, school was remote, and the children just stayed inside the four walls. I hope that the holiday in the mountains will be beneficial and will give Milana a lot of new good impressions."

Those who have already returned from their holidays say there was no time for sadness. The two weeks of summer were scheduled minute by minute. They had to attend all the master classes, be the first to complete quests, travel along the trails of excursion routes, take cool photos against the backdrop of incredible landscapes and send them to their parents so they wouldn't worry. There are also sports games, trainings, good advice from good psychologists, evening dances, new traditions, songs and friends.

The organisers promise that as soon as the second session is over, the third one will start immediately. In total, 400 children aged 9 to 14, whose parents have been mobilised to the Armed Forces of Ukraine or are the IDPs from Metinvest's enterprises, as well as boys and girls who lost loved ones in the war, will remember what peace and childhood should be like. Kryvyi Rih assets will send 173 children on holiday.