“I am grateful for my son's happy eyes”: the mother of a wounded teenager told about his trip to the Shakhtar match after a rehabilitation course from the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation

It has been two years since Tymofiy was seriously injured due to a rocket attack on his native village in the Donetsk region. The Rinat Akhmetov Foundation helped the boy to recover and learn to live a full life again by providing a rehabilitation course. And recently, Tymofiy has fulfilled his dream by attending a football match between Shakhtar and Marseille clubs in Hamburg, Germany. The Foundation organized the trip for the teenager and his mother.

“I am deeply grateful to the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation for the rehabilitation of my son. The program was very well chosen; my son especially liked the swimming pool, the salt room, the Nordic walking, working put on power trainers, and the walks near the sanatorium. After that, Tymofiy got much better physically and psychologically”, his mother Kateryna shares.

In Hamburg, the family met with the captain of the Shakhtar team Taras Stepanenko, attended the pre-match press conference of the football club, a training and the game. The boy has had an unforgettable experience with this trip.

“Tymofiy is very happy with the trip to the match. There were many surprises for him. The flurry of emotions just went off scale. The Rinat Akhmetov Foundation, together with FC Shakhtar, managed to make him happy, surprise him, and gave him an opportunity to relax, and recharge with positive energy”, Kateryna said.

The meeting with Andriy Shevchenko, President of the Ukrainian Football Association, was a special event. The famous football player supported Tymofiy and gave him his autograph on Shakhtar's shirt, which the boy had received as a gift from the football club.

“I'm immensely grateful for the incredible trip. The happiness in my son's eyes is my greatest joy. And you've managed it 100%. I haven't seen Tymofiy so happy, excited, and inspired for a long time”, the boy's mother said.

The Foundation invites children under the age of 18 who have suffered physical injuries or wounds in Ukraine after the beginning of russia's the full-scale invasion to undergo physical and psychological rehabilitation. Rehabilitation takes place in a sanatorium in Zakarpattia. 149 successful courses have already been held. You can submit an application at https://forms.gle/E5QkJ5SLSPsSrMEU6

Over 18 years, more than 5 million children of Ukraine have received support under the “Rinat Akhmetov for Children” program.