The Olena Zelenska Foundation and the Czech-based Kellner Family Foundation launch a partnership to support Ukrainian children and families

The Olena Zelenska Foundation and the Kellner Family Foundation have agreed to launch a partnership aimed at supporting Ukrainian children and families affected by the full-scale war.

This partnership continues the Czech Republic’s consistent support for Ukraine and is focused on providing practical assistance to children and families who need it most. Under the agreement, the Kellner Family Foundation has contributed CZK 170 million to support humanitarian and infrastructure initiatives implemented by the Olena Zelenska Foundation.

The assistance will be directed toward addressing critical gaps in safety, access to education, and basic living conditions for children and families across different regions of Ukraine.

The Olena Zelenska Foundation will channel the support into three key areas.

The first area focuses on strengthening the energy resilience of critical social infrastructure. This includes the procurement of generators, charging stations, inverters, and batteries for schools, hospitals, senior care facilities, and local communities to ensure uninterrupted operation amid ongoing attacks on Ukraine’s energy system.

The second area is humanitarian support for foster and large foster families who have taken in orphaned children or children deprived of parental care. Supporting these families helps preserve family-based care as a stable and safe environment for children.

The third area is the “Safe School” project, through which the Foundation equips shelters, modernizes school kitchens, and ensures the energy autonomy of educational institutions. For Ukrainian children today, schools are not only places of learning but also spaces of stability and safety.

“Last week’s fundraising effort by Czech citizens was very inspiring to us. We cannot just stand by and watch as people in Ukraine struggle for basic necessities such as warmth, light, or drinking water. After consulting with President Petr Pavel, we decided to focus our assistance on those most in need - children in kindergartens and schools, patients in hospitals, foster families, and seniors. It is the least we can do for them in this difficult time,” said Renáta Kellnerová.

Renáta Kellnerová is a Czech business leader and philanthropist. Together with her daughters, she supports education-focused projects through the family foundation, the Kellner Family Foundation, one of the largest private foundations in the Czech Republic. The Kellner Family Foundation and the Olena Zelenska Foundation share a common approach to supporting children and education, which became the basis for this partnership. In turn, the Olena Zelenska Foundation brings together international partners to deliver targeted and timely responses to humanitarian challenges and to direct assistance where it is most urgently needed for children and families.

“For Ukrainian children and families, it is critically important to feel that they are not left alone in the face of war. Supporting children’s safety and education during this time helps shape the future of Ukraine and of Europe as a whole. That is why our partnership with the Kellner Family Foundation is especially meaningful and enables us to support those who need it most,” emphasized Olena Zelenska.

The Olena Zelenska Foundation is a Ukrainian charitable organization founded by the First Lady of Ukraine in 2022. Its work focuses on supporting family-based care, ensuring access to education and development opportunities, and providing psychosocial support to children, adolescents, and young people affected by war.