I have seven children: the oldest is fourteen, the youngest is two. When I was 20 and pregnant with my third child, my husband tragically died in an accident at work. I was grieving for a long time, it was very hard for me to care for the newborn baby.

In a few years, I met a man who made me feel secure, we loved each other and wanted children together, he took care of us. Half a year ago he died. I am still not ready to talk about this. His relatives accused me of his death and didn’t even let me come to the funeral. They kicked me and the kids from the house and we ended up in a shelter.

The brother of the deceased man didn’t leave us alone there: he called, insulted us and threatened. After that the social services moved us to a different shelter in a different city, We have been here for a couple of months, but now the shelter is about to get closed due to the renovations. We would like to rent an apartment but have no money to do so. My father works in a factory and lives in a tiny apartment. As soon as he gets his paycheck he helps us with money. Unfortunaly, the sum of money he is able to give us is a mere drop in the ocean given that I have seven kids.

Currently, I am applying for the honorary title of ‘Mother-heroine’. This is possible when five children reach the age of eight. Of course, we are in the queue for the social housing for a long while, but still with no results. I have asked for help from various authorities as well. I would be very grateful for any help. We need money for the housing and for the kids’ medication - cough syrup, nasal sprays (with no peniciline since the children are allergic to it). The youngest daughter who’s two years old could use some T-shirts and girl tights. We aren’t accumulating too much clothing though since we lack the space to keep it.