Vita Holdman tells that she learned about the outbreak of a full-scale war in bed when her daughter woke her up saying: “Mom, something is banging”. The woman hoped that the invasion would not happen, but when she heard the first explosions, she realized that the danger was real. Her family stayed in Kyiv, in the Solomianskyi district, where explosions were frequent.

Vita recalls that she spent the first few days in a state of shock. For almost a month, they hid in a shelter, where they slept alongside a hundred people. During the day, Vita and her children would bring tea and coffee to the checkpoints, help the hospitals and cook food.