Azovstal defender Yana Shumovetska received an apartment from Rinat Akhmetov

Mariupol defender Yana Shumovetska received the keys to her own apartment through the “At Home” program, which the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation implements in partnership with the Heart of Azovstal project.

Yana Shumovetska has served in Azov since 2017, rising from an ordinary clerk to an officer. She met the full-scale war in Mariupol. Throughout the entire period, she remained in the city with her unit, and in April they managed to break through to Azovstal. On May 18, 2022, she went into captivity and was taken to the notorious Olenivka prison camp. Yana spent four months in captivity - until the prisoner exchange on September 21. She returned home, but her heart remained there. Her husband - also a serviceman - is still in captivity.

“When we left Azovstal and I realized that they were separating us, I was simply lost. What would happen next, what was I supposed to do? I was very lucky to be included in that major exchange involving more than two hundred people, and I hoped that after just one night he would be just as lucky, that it would not drag on for such a long time. But years later, I am still waiting for the prisoners to be exchanged,” Yana says.

Today, Yana continues to support her brothers-in-arms and believe in the power of prisoner exchanges. She knows: the most important reunion still lies ahead, and now she has a place where she will finally be able to tell her husband: “We are home.”

“I am deeply grateful that you gave me this opportunity - to have a home I dreamed about for so long. When you receive your own place, you realize that this is your corner, that you can return here, close the door, and be alone with yourself - this feeling of home was something I missed so much,” Yana admits.

The keys were presented to the defender and she was congratulated on her housewarming by Supervisory Board Chair Nataliia Yemchenko and CEO of the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation Kseniia Sukhova.

“We had to make sure that when you arrived, you liked everything, that everything was there: the furniture and a fully equipped apartment with renovations. This is the task Rinat Akhmetov sets for us. And when you say: ‘I like it, I’m home,’ it means we have fulfilled that task,” emphasized Kseniia Sukhova.

Among the first guests to visit the family in the new apartment was Deputy Commander of the 1st Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine Azov, Sviatoslav “Kalyna” Palamar. According to him, such support is extremely important for every warrior:

“Our boys and girls are being cared for, including being provided with housing. It is very important to stress that this is already the fourth year of the war, and our people are still in captivity. We understand the difficulties, we understand how hard it is to free them from captivity. Our military and political leadership must do everything possible to bring the guys home, as before.”

Supervisory Board Chair of the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation Nataliia Yemchenko explained the philosophy behind the project:

“Over three years of work, Heart of Azovstal has developed and tested a unique ecosystem of support for defenders, built on a comprehensive approach. It is not only about treatment or psychological support, but also about a community of like-minded people, finding a new purpose, and addressing everyday needs. All this forms the path of post-traumatic growth for defenders. And the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation plays a major role in this by providing male and female defenders with Group I or Group II disabilities with their own apartments,” emphasized Nataliia Yemchenko.

Over the past three years, more than 320 apartments from Rinat Akhmetov have already been provided to Mariupol defenders through the “At Home” program.