On May 26, a volunteer appreciation evening was held at the future Veteran Mental Health Centre of Excellence (VMHCE).
The focus was on the volunteers whose selfless work, professionalism and sincere desire for change became the foundation for creating a new space to support veterans and their families.
We express our sincere gratitude to
• Volunteers of the DOBROBAT Volunteer Construction Battalion, headed by Executive Director Dmytro Ivanov and Head of Construction Mykhailo Bryzhko;
• The team of the CF “Brave to Rebuild (Сміливі відновлювати)”, headed by Alyona Krytsuk, Head of Reconstruction, and Maria Bur’novska, Project Manager, for participating in the event with volunteers and for their willingness to join the implementation of this important project.
Their contribution is a significant step towards creating a modern, sensitive, and effective mental health system for the veterans of Ukraine on a national level.
During the meeting, the volunteers were presented with symbolic gratitude. The evening continued in a sincere atmosphere of support, dialogue and a shared vision of change.
The Veteran Mental Health Centre of Excellence (VMHCE) is an innovative initiative that involves the reconstruction of more than 1400 m² of the University Clinic’s premises to create a modern, accessible space for rehabilitation, integration and mental health care for Ukraine’s defenders.
The goal of the project is to implement a model in Ukraine that combines European standards and local needs.
Among the distinguished guests of the event were:
• Robert van Voren, Executive Director of Human Rights in Mental Health-FGIP,
• Romeo Dallaire, Senator of Canada, retired general, honorary member of the Center’s Supervisory Board;
• Marie-Claude Michaud, expert of the Canadian Armed Forces;
• Rachelle Thibault, professor at the University of Ottawa;
• Iryna Pinchuk, Head of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Center;
• Stanislav Chumak, Executive Director of VMHCE;
• Kaminska Svitlana, Head of the Center’s Mental Health Team;
• Robert-Jan Siegert, Deputy Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Ukraine.