Support NGO Molotok's arts and cultural activities in Ukraine

NGO Molotok was established as a cultural organisation dedicated to providing high-quality arts education for children and young people in rural Transcarpathia. For over 18 years, its volunteer leader and head of organisation, Tatjana Bielousova, has run youth and theatre programmes in the region, including an annual international theatre festival for children and young people.

Following the full-scale Russian invasion on 24 February 2022, NGO Molotok expanded its work to provide shelter, food, and psychological support to young people, children, and young families displaced from eastern Ukraine. They are now seeking support for the following projects:

Free Space YO – A Youth and Community Cultural Center

Based in Khust (Western Ukraine), this space has become a cultural and creative hub for local and displaced youth. For nearly two years they’ve organized:

• chess clubs, photography/video workshops, and a theatre studio
• film screenings and artistic performances
• exhibitions, stand-up shows, open mic nights
• one-day arts camps for children
• seminars, skills labs, and informal education for teens
• a women’s club where displaced and local women meet regularly for emotional support and knowledge exchange

Free Space YO has become a trusted gathering space for dialogue, creativity, and recovery from trauma.

Mama+  Arts Camp

Held twice a year in the Carpathians, Mama+ is a 12-day residential therapeutic camp for mothers and their babies (born since 2022) — many of whom still live under the strain of war in frontline or unstable regions of Ukraine.

The programme focuses on holistic healing and strengthening the mother–child bond, offering:

• Early childhood care and play-based learning for babies
• Group and individual therapy for mothers (with trauma-informed facilitators)
• Dance and movement sessions, music, and arts-based healing
• Workshops on self-regulation, parenting, and child development
• Shared rest time in nature, storytelling, community circles, shared meals

This is often the first time these women have had space to rest, be supported, and feel safe again.

Arts Camps for Children and Youth from Frontline Communities

In the past year, we’ve organized four such camps, and we are planning more in the year ahead. In March, we will run a second theatre camp in partnership with The Fetch Theatre (UK). This year, our production was based on the life of Ukrainian artist Polina Raiko. For our next camp, we hope to involve more Ukrainian artists and co-create a performance with the children inspired by Ukrainian folklore.

NGO Molotok is currently seeking financial and partnership support to sustain and expand these vital initiatives. Please do not hesitate to contact Legacy of War Foundation (info@lowf.org) or Nataliya Cummings (info@experienceukraine.com) for more information about this project or for alternative donation methods.

This fundraiser is hosted and administered by Legacy of War Foundation (LoWF) on behalf of Nataliya Cummings and NGO Molotok. 100% of the money raised will go to NGO Molotok - we don't take any funds for costs or overheads.  If the donation target is reached, additional funds will be directed to Molotok's wider arts and trauma support work in Ukraine. In the event that Molotok NGO is unable to continue delivering its activities or LoWF is not able to disburse funds, donations would be allocated to our wider Ukraine Crisis Response programming.