Older people’s stories

On the occasion of Ukraine's Independence Day, we speak with older Ukrainians about what freedom and independence mean to them.

Explore the enduring strength of Ukraine's older generation amidst two years of war.

69-year-old Orest doesn’t believe that age is a barrier to a full life.

74-year-old Andrii shares his story of living in a Ukrainian frontline village

Older Ukrainians speak about their health concerns in times of war.

Tatiana meets daily with other Ukrainian refugees in Moldova to practice Nordic walking together.

Mykola (64) and his wife Nataliia (65) fled the war in Ukraine and are now helping spread kindness within their displaced community.

70-year-old Lyudmila is a social care worker in eastern Ukraine. In addition to talking about her own experience, she echoes the thoughts of the people she has worked with.

People have flocked to the city of Dnipro from all over eastern Ukraine, fleeing the war with Russia. Here are their stories.

I was born on July 12, 1941, as bombs were falling. My father named me ‘Viktoria’ for victory, anticipating a win over the Nazi invaders.

I am from Lyadova in Vinnytsia Oblast, near the Moldovan border, but I moved to a suburb of Kyiv with my daughter, Olga (46), and granddaughter Anastasiia (15), four years ago.

I was born in 1935 in Poltava, and when I was seven, we moved to Russia. For three years, we had nothing to eat, but my mother worked at an orphanage, and she gave us water mixed with flour, and that is how we survived. It was very, very hard.