Ukraine's First Lady visits Kyiv region school where her foundation restored shelter

First Lady Olena Zelenska visited a hub school in Kaharlyk, Kyiv region, where her foundation has restored and equipped a shelter covering nearly 800 square meters.

She reported this on Telegram, according to Ukrinform.

"I visited the hub school in Kaharlyk, where the Foundation restored and equipped a shelter of about 800 square meters. Almost 900 children study here, and a third of them travel daily from surrounding villages. That is why it was important for us to implement such a large-scale project – a shelter that is not only spacious but also ensures safe learning for children from several communities at once," Zelenska said.

She noted that the shelter was restored and equipped with the support of Lower Austria. The First Lady visited Kaharlyk together with partners – Austria's Ambassador to Ukraine Robert Mueller and Head of the Building Management Department at the Office of the Lower Austrian Provincial Government Christoph Reiter-Havlicek.

Zelenska stressed that today a school must be not just a protected building but "a fully functioning environment for life – with heat and light, hot meals, and a sense of normal daily rhythm." Therefore, the Olena Zelenska Foundation is gradually expanding its approach, working not only on shelters but also on other critically important elements of educational infrastructure. This has become the basis for a new comprehensive project, "Safe School."

"As part of this approach, the modernization of the food service area will soon begin at the school I visited today: repairs to the kitchen and cafeteria, installation of modern equipment, and upgrades to furniture and other necessary facilities. Once modernized, the food service will become a hub unit capable of providing balanced meals to about 400 additional children from neighboring communities," Zelenska said.

She stressed that even during wartime, children must be able to study in safe, decent, and comfortable conditions.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, more than 30 shelters in schools and kindergartens across Ukraine have already been restored and equipped with funding from the Olena Zelenska Foundation.