On the day of the full-scale invasion, Filipp woke up to the news about explosions in Kyiv. A few hours later, the first strikes sounded near their house too — the enemy was hitting the airfield. He left for another village with his mother. But soon russian troops entered that place as well — and the village ended up under occupation.

When shells were flying very close, the family ran to the basement. It went on like that until his mother contacted a colleague from the forestry. The man hurried to help the family — through mined roads, with a white cloth on the car as a sign that he was a civilian. He independently mapped a safe route, bypassed minefields and, risking his life, reached the village. He took Filipp’s mother, aunt and Filipp — and drove them out of the occupation.

Then came a long route through russia, then the border. Finally — Poland. Then — Lutsk. And a feeling of relief: "We escaped, we are alive!"

Filipp shared his story within the project “Rinat Akhmetov to Children. Peaceful Rest for the Children of Ukraine.” The project, in the format of a children’s camp, provides psychological rehabilitation, rest and recovery for children affected by the war.