International Campaign "Good Deeds Day" 2026
The acts of kindness that took place from April 10 to April 30 became something much bigger than just a volunteer campaign
The "Good Deeds Day" campaign in Ukraine this year became a story about how, in a country where the sky is too often covered with smoke, people chose to become sunlight for one another. "Good Deeds Day" became proof that humanity is stronger than fear, and that the light of volunteers’ hearts can overcome darkness.
Imagine this: a small kitchen in a community in Mykolaiv, the smell of yeast dough and... sudden darkness. The electricity went out three times while volunteers were trying to bake festive challahs in an electric oven. In the silence, interrupted only by air raid sirens, they literally "caught" every moment when the power returned in order to finish what they had started. "It was terrifying... but the challahs were still born!" participants recall, passing the warmth of this bread to lonely elderly people and internally displaced families.
And stories like these were pulsing across 33 volunteer centers in 27 cities of Ukraine. The 1,475 volunteers who joined the campaign represented one and a half thousand helping hands that did not give up, but continued bringing kindness no matter what. Together, they organized and held 844 events, proving that there is never a "wrong time" for doing good.
For 1,446 elderly people, this marathon of kindness became a bridge back to life. In Kryvyi Rih, volunteers launched the campaign "Not Just a Glass of Water", warming 149 people not only with attention, but with real care - they delivered 300 pairs of warm socks knitted with love.
In Odesa, teenagers and their parents prepared cherry varenyky and matzah muffins to bring to a Jewish nursing home.
Even simple things, such as helping elderly people in Sumy set up gadgets to stay connected with their families, restored their sense of connection with the world.
For 906 children, volunteers created a world where there was no place for anxiety. In Dnipro, little hands decorated gingerbread cookies, while in Kyiv hospitals (Okhmatdyt), children forgot about IV drips and medical procedures during creative workshops. In Khmelnytskyi, children with disabilities became the stars of the culinary "School of Life", preparing cakes and treats. Overall, for the 282 people with disabilities who participated in the kindness марафон, this became a story about dignity and inclusion rather than pity.
Being a volunteer today means working quickly, as they did in Konotop, while danger hangs overhead. There, at an animal shelter, volunteers tried to comfort frightened dogs before having to run to the bomb shelter themselves. It means cleaning community spaces in Zaporizhzhia immediately after shelling, clearing not only dirt, but also the traces of destruction from their second home.
We often speak in numbers, but behind every number stands someone whose faith in humanity was restored:
- 934 hot meals warmed people whose homes were cold and empty;
- 209 quality food packages were collected and delivered to elderly people and large families living in the regions;
- 2,820 kg of waste were collected by volunteers, most of it during clean-up initiatives at Jewish cemeteries;
- 1,387 animals received food and care from volunteers during the campaign.
"Good Deeds Day" became not a quiet harbor of kindness, but a storm that washes away indifference. And this is reflected in the support of 147 partners who joined the initiative.
The campaign once again proved that support is the glue that keeps society from falling apart - just as volunteers in Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy planted flowers and trees, believing they would one day see them bloom.
As long as we continue holding each other’s hands and bringing meaningful change into our homes and hearts through acts of kindness, darkness has no chance.