Nadiya Seredyuk

Even at 70, Nadia Seredyuk first of all remembers that she is a woman. A beautiful, well-groomed woman who doesn’t want to use a cane, even though walking is very difficult for her.

Nadia is originally from the village of Veletenske, Kherson region. After the liberation of Kherson, life did not become easier. On the contrary, everything that could fly into the village—rockets, Grad rockets, and Shaheds—did. Many people died in the village, she says.

The last shell hit three meters from her house. All the windows were shattered, the doors were blown out.

She lived alone, her husband passed away from COVID in 2020. Nine months later, she lost one of her sons. The other son moved abroad. The Russians offered him cooperation, but he refused, so he had to flee.

It was dangerous to stay at home, as she couldn’t go down to the basement. Nadia had suffered a stroke 11 years ago. The effects are still noticeable. Her right side was paralyzed. She was bedridden. Her right arm still doesn’t work. But thanks to massages and exercises, she was able to move her leg. Nadia can walk, but very slowly. She doesn’t want to use a cane, saying she feels awkward.

At home, she left chickens. The neighbors take care of them.

Nadia’s childhood was filled with tragic events. When little Nadia was not yet 5 years old, her mother died. She worked on a farm, and when they were distributing fertilizer in the fields, she was run over by a tractor. She was only 28.

Nadia had a younger brother. He was taken in by her grandparents, while little Nadia stayed with her father because they said it was more expensive to dress a girl than a boy, and they didn’t have the money. Later, her father started a new family, and his new wife became a mother to Nadia.

“She treated me very well, always bought me sweets,” recalls the woman. But things didn’t work out with her father, and the girl was once again left without a mother’s care.

At the age of 8, Nadia was sent to an orphanage. Luckily, she was not mistreated there. She says there was nothing to complain about. That’s where she grew up. At 16, the girl started studying to become a seamstress. Later, she found her love, got married, and had two sons.

The woman worked for 25 years as a cook at a kindergarten. From time to time, she sewed.

Looking back on her life, Mrs. Nadia says that she always lived for others – for her sons, then for her grandchildren, but never for herself.

“Only now, after 48 years, I feel like I’ve gone to a resort,” says the woman about the shelter. “Before, there were three men in the house, and I had to cook, clean, and take care of everything, but now I can finally rest. The girls clean and take care of us. I sincerely thank the staff of the shelter for their care and love.”