Charitable Foundation "Native Beach", which in a short time entered the list of the best in the Odesa region, was established before the full-scale invasion began, but the main work began after 24 February.
Today, "ElitExpert" communicates with one of its founders, doctor of technical sciences and professor Mykhailo Pozhivanov. An experienced administrator, at one time he worked as the mayor of Mariupol, deputy head of the KMDA, deputy minister of economy and MP of Ukraine for four convocations, and now he heads the Odesa city party organization of VO "Batkivshchyna".
Mykhailo Pozhivanov told how the structure of the Foundation was built, what problems he had to face in his daily work, shared important plans for the future and reminded that the main value of a charitable organization is the people who work in it.
— In the first months of the war, we helped the residents of Mariupol with provision and evacuation of families. At one time, I was the head of this city, so I have many friends and acquaintances in Mariupol. People needed help, and as long as it was possible, we worked there.
Around May, when Mariupol, unfortunately, was destroyed, we began to actively work in the field of humanitarian aid. At the same time, I was elected head of the Odesa city party organization "Batkivshchyna" and together with the team and party members we started working in Odesa and the region.
The first thing we faced was the issue of logistics, since the main humanitarian aid was delivered outside the Odesa region. At that time, we did not have a single center - a hub for the delivery and coordination of humanitarian flows. Most of the deliveries came from Romania, Vinnytsia and Lviv regions, but the main problem was that all these deliveries were not centralized - each fund or organization negotiated only for itself and delivered one or two cars. The issue of logistics and communication at the regional level was not worked out.
After analyzing the situation, we decided to work through our party structure. After all, over many years "Batkivshchyna" has grown to almost every village. We have deputies and party members in every community, with whom we are always in touch. On the basis of this, I proposed to join forces for joint and more effective work, because many of our deputies and heads of communities had contacts with various foundations. Together with the head of the Odesa regional organization of the party, Oleg Radkovskyi, we created a Hub in Odesa and found warehouses. Then I was able to allocate freight transport, which was necessary for the delivery of products to Odesa and its distribution among the communities of the region.
Thus, since the end of May, we have already established work in the region. We received and delivered medical equipment, drugs and medicines, hygiene products and food products to the communities. Working with the OTG through our deputies or heads of communities, we understand the needs, the number of displaced people: that is why the people who need it receive help. In addition to displaced persons, we also help low-income families with many children and single pensioners. Thanks to the French Embassy, our foundation received funding for a program to provide people with hot lunches. Every day, 1900 residents of Odesa and Odesa district receive hot meals.
At the end of June, I was in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and Slovenia. He met with the Prime Minister of Slovenia, Janez Janša, with the heads of large organizations, chambers of commerce and foundations, which take an active part in charitable assistance to Ukraine. This made it possible to expand the spectrum of cooperation not only in the humanitarian sphere, but also in other directions.
One of the results of the trip was our meeting at the Odesa City Hall with Deputy Mayor Serhii Tetyukhin and Krisztian Dallos, a representative of the Hungarian-American company ContiNest. This company is engaged in the production of modular containers for quickly assembled housing, medical hospitals and military infrastructure.
The mayor's office has shown interest, and the issue of a site for such housing is already being worked out for the accommodation of displaced persons who are in Odesa and have the specialties necessary to work in the city's infrastructure. Next week, we have planned a meeting with this company in Hungary, where we will familiarize ourselves with their production, technical characteristics of modular houses and discuss the volumes that they will be able to supply us in the near future. In addition to Odesa, we are also working with communities on this issue, especially in the north of the region, where many displaced people are also accommodated.
A SEPARATE DIRECTION OF AID — ZSU
We also help our defenders in the Armed Forces with equipment and food. The military has more complex technical support needs, but we are trying to solve them as well. On one of these issues, we recently visited an Odesa enterprise that manufactures acoustic moderators — that is, "mufflers." Helped them with rent and utility bills, as the uninterrupted operation of such strategic wartime enterprises is now extremely important. They produce silencers for two types of calibers, ours and NATO's, which allow you to completely hide a sniper from detection during combat missions.
PREPARATION FOR WINTER
At the same time, we are working on preparations for the heating season, as it is obvious that it will not be easy. We have already reached out to our partners for generators, equipment and fuel. Having experience as the mayor of Mariupol and the deputy mayor of Kyiv, I really understand all the problems of the city's infrastructure: the current heating season will be very difficult and people will need help. If in rural areas it is possible to switch to wood heating, pellets and other types of alternative fuels, then in cities you need to play it safe and be ready for anything, because in wartime gas and electricity supply is very vulnerable to shelling or missile strikes. And you can expect anything from our enemy. They can bomb any CHP plant and entire cities can repeat the Alchevsk tragedy, so we must be ready for anything.
I would like to emphasize once again the importance and effectiveness of our "Fatherland" party structure. Communicating with many people not only in Odesa, but also in other regions, I see that many have problems and difficulties when building any structure, both for humanitarian work and with displaced persons, especially when time frames are limited . In our case, the party helps a lot in this, and to be honest, apart from "Batkivshchyna" no one else has such a structure today. Someone made a structure at the expense of administrative resources, and when the government changed, it fell apart, and someone - just on paper. Ours is different: they are just people, deputies, and you always have someone to call, in any OTG oblast or region of Ukraine - and they will always help you with any question. Today, in addition to party members, the "Native Bereg" fund includes many Odessans, many Mariupol residents, boys from Melitopol, Berdyansk, and Kherson regions. They all work with us. One of the managers of our fund is Stanislav Troshin from Kherson "Batkivshchyna".
FINANCING OF THE FUND
Donations, personal savings, funds from my art exhibition - everything goes to the fund. Recently, together with the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, we held a huge exhibition in memory of Mariupol, and now it is going to Berlin, then to New York, where the auction will take place. And all the artists agreed that the proceeds from the sale of paintings would go to humanitarian funds, including ours.
Certificate:
The founders of the "Native Bereg" Charitable Foundation are Mykhailo Pozhivanov - doctor of technical sciences, professor, People's Deputy of Ukraine of the 4th convocation, who heads the party organization of the VO "Batkivshchyna" in Odesa, and Oleg Radkovskyi - candidate of technical sciences, People's Deputy of Ukraine of the 2nd of convocations, head of the party organization of VO "Batkivshchyna" in Odesa region. First Deputy Chairman of the Odesa Regional Council.
If you want to join and help the "Native Shore" Charitable Foundation, contact the office of the Odesa regional organization of the "Batkivshchyna" party on str. Preobrazhenska, 45.
