Communication with people brings different emotions and impressions. The conversation with Alla from Zhytomyr left a warm aftertaste. The meeting with her was not accidental, as Alla received assistance as part of the project «Improving Rehabilitation Services in the Healthcare System». It is implemented by the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Momentum Wheels for Humanity.
The woman was born to hearing parents and lost her ability to hear when she was six years old due to an illness. She speaks a little, slurring her words, so she uses sign language to communicate. She learned it in special educational institutions. First, she attended a school in Troianiv, and then continued her education at the Bereziv Special Boarding School for Children with Hearing Loss. At the boarding school, they put special headphones on her ears because she had a small percentage of hearing left, and thus taught her to speak.
Anna gave birth to and raised two sons. The boys were born hearing, but their mother found it difficult to talk to them and taught them sign language. Now they are fluent in it. She raised her children alone because she divorced her husband. Her youngest son, Vadym, is currently at war. He volunteered in March 2022 and has never been home since then, unable to hug his family. The eldest son is divorced, has two children, and now helps his mother.
Today, Alla works as a janitorial assistant. She shakes her head sadly, because she has only 0.25 of a full-time job. She doesn't have enough money to live on, because her salary and pension are very small, and she has to pay for the rent. The expenses are spent exclusively on the most necessary things. Of course, in such circumstances, help is very important.
«I received an ATB Certificate for a thousand hryvnias," says Alla, overwhelmed with joyful emotions, "I was so pleased to receive this help! I carried it home in two hands (At these words, the woman made a whole pantomime: she loaded full bags and walked with her arms spread and tipping from side to side). It was hard to carry, but it was so nice! The main thing was that I was able to buy food with this certificate. I'll tell you what I bought: different kinds of chicken, canned food, and oil. Things I could rarely afford. I was so excited about shopping that I spent my one hundred and sixty-five hryvnias, because I was so excited to buy everything and didn't want to return anything. I was very good at shopping, good help. You know, our life is so complicated and I would like to get another certificate," added Alla.
The conversation with Alla Vladyslavivna was emotional, funny and warm. Perhaps her experience as an actress had an impact. The woman is an active member of the People's Theater, where she reads poetry and sings songs in sign language. Have you seen this? Come to Zhytomyr and see it!
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This initiative is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development under cooperative agreement number 7200AA18CA00032 with Partnerships Plus, funded through September 28, 2018, and implemented by the JSI Institute for Research and Training under agreement number PP-EI-001 with Momentum Wheels for Humanity. The contents are the sole responsibility of the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
