New Year postcards of kindness

Post- and e-mail cards created by famous Ukrainian artist Evgenia Gapchinska were presented during Ukrainian exhibition of postcards, that took place in Kyiv main post-office. These sentimental postcards, that appeared on the initiative of the Elena Pinchuk ANTIAIDS Foundation, will be sold at departments of "Ukrposhta" in Kiev, and from January - in Donetsk, Odessa, Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Uzhgorod, Kharkov, and also in the Internet. All funds raised will be directed to the newly established rehabilitation center for HIV-positive children in Makeyevka orphanage.

Every person who buys a charity card, will not only help to improve the health of HIV-positive children, but also will be able to share information about good deeds with their family and friends. Each card is marked by a special logo (white dove on a blue background with the words "Charity Postcard"), and contains information about funds distribution. For those who prefer traditional post to digital, the option of a charity e-card is offered on the site www.mrii.in.ua. Postcards are available not only to private individuals, the tradition to send holiday greetings to colleagues and partners has become a part of corporate culture in our country. Separate edition of postcards for will be printed for every company that expressed readiness to join the project. Elena Pinchuk ANTIAIDS foundation has collaborated with major international business partners in similar projects. For example, in 2009, Christmas card with a drawing by HIV-positive boy was created for the company Shell.

Proceeds from this project will be used to create rehabilitation unit for HIV-positive children aged 0 to 5 years in Makeevka orphanage. This unit will provide services for children and their parents in order to prepare them for antiretroviral therapy.

Thanks to the work of experienced doctors, psychologists and tutors dozens of children will have chance to improve their health, reduce risks of opportunistic infections and other co-infections. Furthermore, mortality risks caused by advanced HIV infection for these children will dramatically decrease. One small charity card can save fragile child's life.

Elena Pinchuk, founder of the ANTIAIDS Foundation: "For the nine years of the foundation’ work, we have helped hundreds of HIV-positive children and dozens of medical institutions where HIV-positive kids treated. And we continue this work. But every year the number of such children is increasing. Of course, 5 hryvnias for charity card will not change the fate of the AIDS epidemic in our country. But these efforts can change the fate of the individual child. The price of saving a child life can be that small".

Eugene Gapchinskaya: "I strongly believe that beauty will save the world. So I did not hesitate a second when "ANTIAIDS" foundation asked me to join this initiative. I agreed to donate two of my images for this project. I tried to express the atmosphere of a New Year's miracle and hopes people have in a Christmas time. Dreams that are vital for HIV-positive children, and I want to share it with them...".

Lyudmila Batekhina, deputy chief of Makeyevka orphanage, “Kids, who receive help in our orphanage are very strong. From the first days of their lives, they know how to fight for it. But even the strongest people need help. I want to thank everyone who is will join this initiative in advance. When you look at the image on a postcard, it smiles at you. If you look again and again, you might see the smile of an HIV-positive child you helped and his deepest appreciation".

HIV / AIDS in Ukraine

There were 17 132 new cases of HIV infection (of whom 3 344 children under 14 years) during 10 months of 2012 in Ukraine. This means that every day in 2012 56 Ukrainians had HIV diagnosis.

The most affected by the HIV/AIDS regions remain Mykolayiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Odessa, Donetsk and Sevastopol.

In total 219 919 new cases of HIV-infection (36 099 of them are children) were officially registered in Ukraine starting from 1987. From 1987 to October 2012 27 830 people died from the AIDS epidemic, among them 321 child.

Nowadays Ukrainians are getting HIV through unprotected sex more often compare to 2008. If in 2005 33% of all infected contracted HIV through sexual contacts, in 2010-2011 the number jumped to 45%.

Ukraine keeps its leadership in Europe when it comes to new cases of HIV. According to the UNAIDS experts, more than 1% of the Ukrainian population lives with HIV. And only half knows of their diagnosis.

Each year, the number of HIV-positive people in Ukraine grew, but since 2005 new HIV cases (acceleration of the epidemic) are decreasing every year: in 2005 compared with 2004 - plus 15.6%, in 2011 compared with 2010 - plus 3.4%.

Eugeniya Gapchinsaya - Ukrainian artist, painter, illustrator of children's books. She graduated from the Kharkov Art Institute. She had probation at Nuremberg Academy of Arts. Her Exhibition and art career began in 2002. In 2008, "Ukrposhta" released a series of 12 stamps 'Zodiac Signs' with the works of Eugenia Gapchinska. Annually she holds more than dozen of new exhibitions in Ukraine, Russia, France, Belgium, England, the Netherlands and other countries. Eugenia is the owner of several galleries in Ukraine and Russia. Her works are kept in European museums and in private collections.

Project partner - International Charity Foundation "Health of Ukrainians” (www.healthup.org.ua) - an international non-governmental and charity non-profit organization which carries out projects and programs at the health sector, aimed at strengthening and improving health of the Ukrainian people, the developing of medicine and the creating of required level of health and social services. Since 2011, the Foundation is implementing the project "Revival of Ukrainian postcard." Under the project charity cards are created, the money from the sale of which are transmitted for charity purposes (www.postcard.org.ua).

The ANTIAIDS Foundation (www.antiaids.org) was founded by Elena Pinchuk in 2003 and is the first and the only privately funded anti-AIDS charity in Ukraine. The foundation aims to operate on all levels - from national projects to direct support to individuals affected by the HIV epidemic. The Foundation is known for implementing innovative and interactive projects using web-technologies.

Over the nine years of its work foundation deals with HIV / AIDS prevention and helping people living with HIV / AIDS. The Foundation strives to work at all levels, from national projects to direct help for people affected by the AIDS epidemic. The Foundation also regularly provides assistance to orphanages, where HIV-positive children live, and hospitals. Elena Pinchuk ANTIAIDS Foundation develops and implements social preventive and educational programs aimed at young people. Among them are the projects for homeless girls and young women who are vulnerable to the HIV infection (jointly with Elton John AIDS Foundation). Foundation also implements innovative interactive projects using web-technologies: social service maps.in.ua with Google, online auction "Stars for sale" with Korrespondent.net, Fashion AID, the joint project with the Coca-Cola Foundation - Safe Connection.

For detailed information, please, contact Pavel Piminov, Communications Director, Elena Pinchuk ANTIAIDS Foundation: +380 67 466 8736, [email protected].