Construction of General Welfare Center

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At the end of March 2025, during a three-day business trip to Ukraine, I visited the construction status of the welfare facility in Berehove, the planned site of the new kitchen point. Last year, due to the high cost of living, the weak yen, the lack of manpower, and the fact that the construction workers that were finally secured were no longer available due to the draft, there were many headaches, and construction was delayed significantly, but since the beginning of this year, construction has been progressing steadily.

In Japan, it is normal for construction to proceed as planned, but something always happens in Ukraine, and when a project is progressing smoothly without any problems, it makes me feel uneasy. Just when I was on the alert that something might happen soon, an unexpected intervention came in from an unexpected source. President Trump's closure of USAID and other major increases in tariffs on countries around the world are certain to have an impact on the situation in Ukraine as well. Of course, it will not be a positive impact.

If humanitarian aid is delayed and inflation accelerates, the situation of vulnerable people, such as refugees who are struggling to make ends meet, elderly people left behind, and single mothers fleeing from the front lines to the western region, will surely worsen. Considering their circumstances, the kitchen of the welfare facility and the chapel, which will serve as a place of spiritual comfort, must be completed at all costs.

The workers are highly motivated, continuing construction on weekends with the goal of having the kitchen up and running in September. Insulation of the roof and exterior walls, electrical work, water, water, and heating systems have already been completed, and now they are working on the interior of the kitchen. Once the tiles are laid, they can visualize what the building will look like when it is completed, and their expectations are high.

As a side note, from the end of February to the beginning of March, storks from Africa move into the center. A couple of storks near the center have already completed building their nests, and the mother bird is warming her eggs.

“By the time the little birds leave the nest!”

I have been envisioning the pattern of the local aunties' hearty cooking and delivery of the food to each of the beneficiaries in the neighboring villages.