As Ukraine continues to endure relentless attacks, Project Kesher Ukraine’s comfort kits are bringing moments of joy and calm to children living under siege. Designed by Chicago-based clinical psychologist Dr. Lisa Lombard, the comfort kits offer trauma-informed tools to help children manage anxiety, process stress and reconnect emotionally with their caregivers, even while sheltering in bomb shelters and displacement centers.
Each kit contains thoughtfully selected items: animal finger puppets for co-regulation and imaginative play; a stress ball for muscle relaxation; soap bubbles for calming breathwork; colored pencils and a notebook for expression; stickers; a mood ring; and a printed guide titled “6 Skills to Improve Well-Being.”
Among the children who received these kits was five-year-old Max, who recently spent a terrifying night sheltering in Lviv with his mother Svitlana. Despite his fear of the nearby explosions, Max found moments for play, which gave both mother and child much-needed normalcy and emotional relief.