If you are familiar with Kidsave’s work in Ukraine, then you’ve likely heard the names Pavlo and Olena. Pavlo and Olena Shulha are an integral part of our team in Ukraine and have been instrumental in our humanitarian aid distribution, the development of the Kidsave Miracles Center, and the operation of the Family Support Center. The Shulhas are a force of nature; whatever project or task they set their minds to, they accomplish.
Both of them, from an early age, decided they wanted to dedicate their lives to helping orphans. For Olena, it began when she was a teenager.
“I was very young, only about 13 or 14, when I first visited [an orphanage],” said Olena. “One boy called me ‘mom.’ He was of Roma nationality. It was hard for me, but I understood he needed love. I came home crying and told my mom, ‘He called me mom. Can we take him in?’”
For Pavlo, his dedication to helping orphans is rooted in his faith. “We are religious people and believe in helping orphans and widows,” said Pavlo. “We saw how horrible some kids’ living conditions were—no material support, terrible situations. When you spend time with a child and play with them and they ask, ‘Can you be my dad?’ that breaks your heart.”
Once Pavlo and Olena were married, they began discussing fostering and adoption.
“At first we thought maybe we’ll adopt one child,” said Pavlo. “We went to the child protective service, and they said it’s okay for us even if we aren’t wealthy, so we took in two kids. After that, we decided we could do more. Even though it’s hard, we knew it was the right thing. Some children are so sincere—they just want to be loved.”
Pavlo and Olena soon had a biological son, but they remained committed to taking in orphans.
“We joined a support program for foster families,” said Pavlo. “It helped us learn about trauma, raising children who went through tough experiences, and how to help them heal from abuse whether it’s emotional, physical, or sexual. We were part of a weekend program where parents and children could bond, and it showed us that families can look different, but love is the same.”
In 2024, Pavlo and Olena were essential in the opening of the Kidsave Miracles Center in western Ukraine, a site designed to be a haven for orphans and children deprived of care. In the first six months of operating, the Miracles Center welcomed 43 youth through its doors and provided them with respite from the war, therapeutic services, and lots of opportunities to play.
Behind the scenes, social workers and staff worked to find foster and adoptive families for those orphaned and worked towards reunification for those with living relatives. The team celebrated many successes with eleven children reunited with their biological families, four children placed with foster families, and four children placed in permanent guardianships or adoptive families.
There was a big challenge during this time, though: a sibling set of six. Like many child welfare systems, Ukraine does not separate siblings because research shows it is best for the children to remain together through foster care and adoption. However, it is often difficult to find an adoptive family for large sibling groups like this one. Despite their best efforts, the team in Ukraine wasn’t having any luck identifying a potential adoptive family for these children, and it seemed as though they were going to have to return to the orphanage after their stay at the Miracles Center.
Pavlo and Olena decided they couldn’t let this happen. In early 2025, over 10 years since they took in that first child, they welcomed the six siblings into their home.
“We talked as a family,” said Pavlo. “We already have seven kids. One, Olya, just got married and left. We had room in our hearts and home. Now they call us mom and dad, and they feel safe and loved. Now we have 13 children in our family.”
Pavlo and Olena’s impact reaches far beyond their four walls. The work they have done in Ukraine has impacted thousands of children, creating bright spots in an otherwise dark time in their nation’s history.
“We’ve learned so much—how to help kids who experienced trauma, how to heal their emotional wounds, and most of all, how love can truly change lives,” said Pavlo.
