Khukhlianska, Zoia

Description

Tell about your childhood, school, family, etc.

I was born into a happy family. I had three sisters and one brother. We all loved each other. I finished a secondary school and a special music school. After obtaining a degree in music from pedagogical college, I went on to study at the pedagogical institute. I majored in defectology and speech therapy.

Where did you work? Was your work good? Were you happy with your job?

I worked as a music teacher at kindergarten and music school for 30 years. I was really happy with my work.

Tell about your present life.

Bakhmut was completely destroyed. It does not exist any more. What’s left is heaps of rubble. Everything has been mined, even the cemeteries. What kind of life is that? I have no place to live. My government pension is very small. I have no place to go back to. To find a job one needs to be much younger, and I will soon turn 70.

Have you accepted Christ? How long have you been following the Lord?

I believe in Christ. When I was a child, my mother talked to me about God. Although we were surrounded by atheists, that did not stop her from telling me the stories from the Old Testament as well as the stories about the life, ministry and disciples of Christ.

Tell about one thing your sponsor needs to know about you.

I am very grateful for your help.

I came from Bakhmut. This city was razed to the ground. There is not a single building left standing – just charred walls and piles of debris. And Bakhmut used to be a blooming and green city, with so many rose gardens. Clean, well-maintained, beautiful city. I lived in it all my life (except for those years that I spent studying at college and institute). I have a son. He lives in Dnipro. My second son died. He had a heart condition. My husband took part in the clean-up operation after the Chernobyl NPP accident. He also died.  I live alone, my pension is very small. I live with relatives, but I really want to find another place to live. You can’t take advantage of someone’s hospitality for so long. You have to learn to stand on your own, even though it is difficult to do it at 70.