The BGV Charitable Foundation, founded by the family of Gennadii Butkevych, has made support for Ukrainians’ mental health a core priority. According to UNICEF, almost half of Ukrainians experience anxiety and stress in conditions of full-scale war¹. Therefore, in 2024, the BGV Charitable Foundation launched two projects in the Zhytomyr region to support the mental health of Ukrainians of all ages. Total funding amounted to UAH 16.6 million, including UAH 11.9 million, which the founder’s family contributed.

The first project, a psychosocial support center for adolescents called “SviTY,” opened in January 2024 in partnership with the Kids of Ukraine organization. The center offers a modern, well-equipped space for teenagers, including internally displaced youth and children of military personnel. The “SviTY” educational and psychological program is designed to support young people growing up amid war. Psychosocial activities help them better understand themselves and build communication skills, critical thinking, and emotional resilience.

Since January 2024, nearly 150 teenagers have completed the “SviTY” center’s program. Staff have conducted more than 1,000 trainings and workshops, including individual and group sessions with psychologists, art therapy and restorative practices, spoken English and sports activities, interactive classes and game sessions, and courses on the basics of video production and blogging.

In addition, the BGV Charitable Foundation runs summer psychosocial rehabilitation camps for teenagers from socially vulnerable categories in the Carpathians, Germany, and Estonia. 205 teens participated in six sessions in 2024-2025.

The foundation’s second initiative is a Resilience Center for residents of the Zhytomyr community, opened in May 2024 in partnership with Ukraine’s Ministry of Social Policy and the Fund for Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities. The center provides primary psychological care, long-term mental health support, assistance to IDPs in rebuilding relationships, grief and trauma counseling, parenting-skills training, family support, and guidance on social services. Specialists conduct group master classes and events and coordinate volunteer initiatives. In particular, the Resilience Center runs:

• Parenting without Stress – a program that helps parents develop calm, mindful parenting skills and strengthen family bonds;
• Self-Help Plus – an international program for building self-regulation skills in crisis situations;
• Psychological First Aid – training in basic techniques for supporting people under stress;
• 8-step bereavement program – for adults, children, and adolescents who have lost a loved one;
• Psychological recovery groups for active military personnel – using methods such as training, art therapy, and sessions with elements of canistherapy;
• Training and support programs for first-line responders (SES, police, medics) –  instruction on operational algorithms during conflicts and crisis communication with the public.

To date, more than 10,000 community residents have sought support from the Resilience Center. The center is expanding partnerships to improve access to social and psychological services and has signed 47 memoranda of cooperation so far.

An essential part of the Center’s work involves setting up themed locations across the city, where specialists inform Zhytomyr residents about available services, host master classes and interactive activities, run initiatives to help children prepare psychologically for the school year, organize charity hubs, and stage other community support events.