With the funds received, he bought a new smartphone, laptop, furniture for the expanded store, books to replace those that were lost, and an air conditioner that also serves as a heater. “Now it’s warm in our bookshop, and we look forward to welcoming the children to the free reading club that we organized before the war and that we want to continue.”
“When you read children’s books now, you look at them differently than when you were a child,” shared Iryna, explaining the secret of her love for her business.
As for his own favorite book, he immediately pointed to “Giraffes Can’t Dance” by Giles Andreae, on a shelf near the cashier’s desk.
Gerald, a giraffe, wants to dance but can’t. After teasing the other animals, he felt very sad and left the party where they were all gathered. On his way home, he met a cricket playing the violin. “I’m sorry!” coughed the cricket, seeing Gerald at the party. “But sometimes when you’re different, you need a different song.” The cricket started playing the violin and Gerald started dancing! Some animals are amazed: “How did you learn to dance like that? Please, Gerald, tell us how.” But Gerald just spun around and finished the bow. Then he raised his head and looked up at the moon and stars above. “We can all dance,” he said, “When we find the music we love.”
Within the project “SME Boost: Economic Integration of Internally Displaced Persons and Business Recovery” (December 2021-May 2024), funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German Development Bank (KfW), more more than 700 businesses in Ukraine will receive grants between EUR 4,500 and 20,000 to survive and develop business throughout the country. In addition, the project engages the Ukrainian diaspora to support the recovery of the country and businesses through skills development, business support, and access to finance, networks and markets.
Text by Varvara Zhluktenko, photos by Alisa Kyrpychova, IOM Ukraine
