Swiss specialists worked at the Vilshany Orphanage for a week, coordinated by Chantal Moor, a member of the Presidium of the Association "Parasolka". Together with the team of the Medical Aid Committee in Zakarpattya, colleagues from Switzerland helped to introduce new techniques in the workshops, arrange the renovated buildings of the institution, deepen the competencies of the orphanage staff, and develop the skills of the residents. 

This time, the activities took place in the woodworking workshop, where Beat Hunziker and Luzius Wehren worked, the card workshop, where Chantal Moor worked, and the weaving and felting workshops, where Stephanie Fink-Schmid conducted training. It was both an exchange of experience with Ukrainian colleagues and interaction with the orphanage residents who choose to work in creative studios.

Several days of collaboration resulted in wonderful products that decorated not only the shelves of the inclusive café-shop "Kosytsia", but also the living quarters of the institution's residents. Incidentally, new shelves from the woodworking workshop appeared in "Kosytsia", where postcards from the card workshop will be placed. In addition, the game room in the "Narcissus" house was fully equipped, and comfortable and safe doors were installed there. And in the physical rehabilitation room, a multifunctional sports trainer was installed for training muscles, developing coordination, and improving the physical fitness of the youngest residents of the new building. 

"Systematic work to deepen professional exchanges between specialists from Swiss social institutions and Transcarpathian institutions is yielding results. Every year, we see improvements in the quality, functionality, and appearance of products from the ceramics workshop, and new products are appearing in the card workshop – now they are creating not only postcards and drawings, but also gift bags. In the spring, through joint efforts, a space for recreation and leisure called "Kolo" appeared on the territory, and this is also a result that can be seen and even felt. Autumn visits by Swiss colleagues are always about new training and the results of previous ones. Now we are joining forces to set up work in additional renovated buildings of the orphanage, where the youngest wards already live and the older residents learn independence", says Lesya Levko, project coordinator of CAMZ.

After completing their work in Vilshany, the visitors went to the Social Habilitation and Rehabilitation Center "Parasolka" in Tyachiv, where they had coffee at the recently opened inclusive café and pastry shop "Chocolate" and talked with the residents of the facility. 

It should be noted that the busy visit of the Presidium of the Association "Parasolka" to Transcarpathia ended in September. The series of master classes became a kind of continuation of the annual autumn collaboration between the Committee and Swiss partners, its practical component, designed to continue the integration of new forms of employment for people with disabilities in Ukraine and improve their living conditions.