We want to move away from any standards when talking about a dream come true. After all, the idea that the Medical Aid Committee in Zakarpattya has been nurturing for 15 years can definitely be called a dream. However, on Monday, December 18, the workshop "Inclusive Cafe-Shop "Kosytsia" in the Vilshany Children Orphanage took place and is quite real!

"Is this all for real? I’ve only seen this on Facebook! Oh, it’s my crafts!" says Edita, a resident of the Vilshany Children Orphanage and one of the students of the new workshop at the institution.

"Kosytsia" is primarily a space for the professionalization of young people from Vilshany and the mutual socialization of them and the community. The glass doors and facade of the building embody the idea of openness and barrier-free access. We often talk about the desire to blur borders to open up the world, but at the same time we have to remove the framework of stereotypes and prejudices that make this world limited, imaginary, and sometimes unfair and cruel.

What is "Kosytsia"? Now it is a fully functioning workshop where the orphanage’s residents learn the skills of waiters, baristas, sales assistants... Accompanied by social coaches, they master the use of special equipment, study the types of coffee drinks, learn how to interact with customers, and, what is especially nice, present their work to visitors – the crafts they are working on in the other workshops. Currently, the shelves of the cafe-shop feature incredibly beautiful beaded paintings (Edita creates them), candles, ceramic dishes and decor, postcards, woolen products, works from the weaving workshop, and more. All this will be carefully and tastefully packaged to become a gift, an element of home or office decoration, or a favorite cup or candle holder at home.

"Everything produced in the local workshops is of high quality and very competitive. The coaches provide wards with high-quality consumables and use modern equipment. The committee has been taking care of this since the launch of each workshop. We periodically invite Swiss specialists, who cooperate with Ukrainian colleagues here, to share their experience conduct master classes, and teach children", said Lesya Levko, project coordinator of the CAMZ.

She also familiarized both the trainers and the workshop visitors with the specifics of the coffee machine, kitchen equipment, and dispenser, and not only talked about coffee and tea, but also treated everyone to their favorite drinks. It was the first day of acquaintance with the new institution, its mission and opportunities. Until late in the evening, the residents of orphanage were studying, asking questions, getting used to the atmosphere of the cafe-shop, decorating it with their own hand-made advent calendar, the materials for which were sent to them by friends from Switzerland. But everyone felt the seriousness of their future work when they received branded clothing.

"We took the matter seriously. Every element of the institution – from building materials to furniture and the smallest details in the decor – was carefully selected so that everything was in the same style, harmoniously combined with the purpose of the workshop and its name. We consciously departed from the tradition of local architectural authenticity, because we wanted to present something new for both the residents of orphanage and the local community – stylish, comfortable, attractive, at the same time cozy and interesting in every detail. This building definitely attracts attention and makes you want to come in. And we know that our young people are very much looking forward to visitors, a little bit afraid, but eager to communicate beyond the orphanage environment. We are worried together with them, but we are confident that everything will work out", emphasizes Nadiya Danch, the Committee’s project coordinator, who shaped the design vision and oversaw its implementation.

It is important to know that "Kosytsia" is part of the Vilshany Children Orphanage. Both the technical and main entrances to the building, as well as the restroom, bar, and main hall, were designed to be comfortable for any of the residents and all visitors. It is safe, comfortable, barrier-free, and inclusive.

When you are in Vilshany, heading through this village to Kolochava or vice versa, you will definitely notice the "Kosytsia". Day, evening, and night, the building attracts the eyes of travelers. The first official visitors to the cafe-shop were representatives of the Drahivska ATC and the regional department of social protection.

"You have a full house. Get to work", – this is how the express test began for Edita, Ihor, Fedir, Pavel and Eduard. They were taking orders, treating customers to sweets, serving coffee, offering own crafts, thanking for the visit and inviting visitors to come back. And all this was accompanied by incredible inner excitement, but the delight of the new experience did not allow them to show it to others. They succeeded. And this is only the beginning. There are still issues to be resolved that are beyond our competence.

"We would like "Kosytsia" to become a real social enterprise. But the legislation does not allow us to sell either drinks or crafts here. That’s why we start with a social workshop, working on acquiring the necessary skills for our wards, so that when the legal framework changes, we will be ready to use them fully. Our children are talented and capable. To see this, you don’t need to start with pity, you just need to look at their work and talk to them", said Bohdan Kykyna, director of the Vilshany Children Orphanage.

The "Kosytsia" workshop has already been included in the orphanage’s class schedule, and its first visitors and responsible coaches have been identified. The employees of the institution already know exactly where they will be served the most delicious coffee. The rest of the guests will also have the opportunity to taste it and get a beautiful handmade product for a donation to support the workshops in the orphanage. This is important, first of all, not because of the financial structure, but to visualize the value of the results of human labor.

We deliberately did not emphasize in this story that we are talking about workshops where children and young people with disabilities are trained. This fact in no way affects the quality of their work, but the quality itself is achieved with more effort. They can and want to be like everyone else, to work and achieve good results to the best of their abilities. That is, their goals are exactly the same as those of every average person. For almost 24 years of activity of the Medical Aid Committee in Zakarpattya, we have repeatedly seen from the example of specialized institutions abroad that integration, socialization, professionalization, and later self-actualization of people with disabilities are possible. It is also possible to get not only satisfaction from your work, but also profit, the opportunity to independently improve your living conditions and quality of life in general. An important area of our work is to promote this idea by all available means, gradually implementing its components. We are grateful to everyone who is doing this with us.

 

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