Video: Hope and Healing in Ukraine

"Live here, live for your child. Live for your brothers who are also injured."

Meet Volodya "Buddha" Rudkovsky, 33, a father and combat war veteran. He was severely injured in battle, after stepping on an anti-personnel mine while rescuing his comrade. He endured a painful recovery, including multiple surgeries, stretching out over months. After receiving a prosthetic, he struggled to adapt to his new condition. But he didn't do it alone.

The UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Center is part of a hospital network that ranks among Ukraine's largest, and has treated more than 27,000 people wounded people since the full-scale invasion, including 360 children. Patients receive holistic care, from emergency treatment and surgery to burn care, prosthetics, facial reconstruction and physical rehabilitation.

Direct Relief has supported this work since 2022, with almost $7 million, including $1.14 million to help establish UNBROKEN University, a postgraduate training and research institution focused on trauma care, surgery, rehabilitation and mental health.

With Direct Relief's support, the center has also established a major mental health facility providing treatment for PTSD, trauma-related concussions, epilepsy and other neurological conditions.

Direct Relief's total support to Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion has been $2.4 billion worth of medicines, medical supplies, including $71 million in cash grants

Watch this video to learn more about Volodya's remarkable story, and the extraordinary impact he, and the teams at UNBROKEN, have had on so many lives.