KYIV, Ukraine – Imagine having your home destroyed and strangers showing up to help you rebuild. That’s happening across Ukraine as Russian strikes shatter entire neighborhoods.
Just after three in the morning on May 24th, massive explosions jolted the quiet community of Markhalivka, southeast of Kyiv.
“We were struck by two Iranian Shahed drones and two Russian ballistic missiles,” resident Victor Vlasenko told CBN News.
Vlasenko shared a home video with us that he took just minutes after the attack.
“My wife and I were in the house that night, sleeping. We are extremely lucky to be alive because they struck so close, but fortunately, none of the shrapnel or glass hit us. We are lucky,” said Vlasenko.
As daylight broke, the extent of devastation became painfully clear.
“There was debris everywhere. People were absolutely stunned and in shock,” said Vlasenko.
Today, however, something quite different is happening.
Hammers are swinging, roofs are rising, and hope is taking shape.
These are the volunteers of Dobrobat, one of Ukraine’s largest volunteer reconstruction battalions.
“Right here, one of the Russian ballistic missiles struck, and right next to it, a Shahed drone hit this home. Another drone hit behind this building, and another missile struck right here,” said Mykhailo Bryzhko.
Leading us through the shattered neighborhood is Dobrobat’s head of regional development.
“These are civilian infrastructures; ordinary people live here. Unfortunately, a man died in this building, and many were wounded,” Bryzhko told CBN News.
At Victor’s home, team volunteers are just beginning the long rebuilding process.
“As you can see, the house was destroyed, and our first step is to rebuild the roof so that it’s not leaking and not flooding the rest of the house,” Bryzhko said.
Dobrobat now works across fourteen regions of Ukraine.
And for families like the Vlasenkos, the help is life-changing.
“I want to give my great thanks to these volunteers who are helping rebuild my home,” Vlasenko told CBN News. “It would be extremely tough without them managing the scale of the financial costs to fix our place.”
Dobrobat’s Mission to Rebuild
Dobrobat started shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine back in 2022.
Since then, some 52,000 volunteers from twenty-eight countries have joined the organization with one goal in mind: to start rebuilding this country.
Among those swinging hammers and clearing debris are Ukrainians from across the country, each driven by their own sense of purpose.
“I have been doing construction work for 20 years; these are tough times,” said Olexandr Mezin, a Dobrobat volunteer. “War is so scary and tough, and that is why what we are doing is so critical.”
These crews deploy after each missile or drone attack, sometimes within hours.
“So far, we have rebuilt more than 10,000 homes around the country, thousands of apartments, and more than 120 civic centers, hospitals, schools, and kindergartens,” said Bryzhko.
The word Dobrobat in Ukrainian means “volunteer battalion” or simply “kindness battalion.”
Today, that kindness is carrying Victor and his wife through a moment they never imagined facing.
“I feel bad for them, I sympathize with their situation, so I had to step in and help,” said Igor Lafinchuk, a Dobrobat volunteer working on Victor’s home. “This is my soul’s calling, I feel the need to help others during this time for the country, and I think we all need to help each other and stand united.”
Among the newest volunteers is 22-year-old Michael, an American from New Mexico.
His connection is deeply personal: his father is Russian, his mother American, and he has Ukrainian relatives. His family supports his decision to serve here.
“They support Ukraine, coming from a Russian background, my family is very ashamed of what our country is doing to Ukraine, so I think it’s important to help when possible,” Michael told us.
We met Michael and these Dobrobat volunteers repairing an apartment complex in another recently damaged area of Kyiv.
“I love it here, honestly,” said Michael. “It’s like one of my favorite cities I have ever been to. I’ve traveled quite a bit; I’ve been living out of a backpack for the past four years, and by far, Ukraine is my favorite country.”
It is Michael’s first time in Ukraine, and despite ongoing Russian strikes, he’s not deterred.
“There’s danger wherever you go in life, and of course, there is danger here,” said Michael. “This is a city that is in an active war zone, we do get bombed, but as you can see here, everyone is brought together, close-knit community, so it doesn’t feel as dangerous.”
Back in Markhalivka, as debris turns into construction materials and trauma slowly gives way to hope, families like Victor’s know they are not alone.
Across Ukraine, Dobrobat volunteers are proving that even during relentless attacks, compassion can rebuild what missiles destroy.
