Right to Protection and 7 Squad

Like many Ukrainians at home and abroad, illustrator Nata Schepy has been using her talents and passion to support her country. Specifically, she has been working with two volunteer organizations offering crucial support to Ukrainians during the war: the Mental Health Service of the National Humanitarian Organization Right to Protection Charitable Foundation and 7 Squad.

Right to Protection

The Right to Protection is a humanitarian organization that has cared for refugees, stateless persons, and internally displaced persons for 10 years, ramping up its efforts for the first time during Russia’s invasion into Crimea in 2014. The Mental Health Service arm was established after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It provides a stable tool to maintain and restore the mental health of Ukrainians enduring the war and begin the process of healing from the trauma.

Recently, Nata created illustrations to accompany Right to Protection’s series of lectures on managing emotions, living with loss, easing panic attacks and a variety of other useful topics. All lectures, presented in Ukrainian, are available free of charge via the organization’s channel on Telegram, a messaging app that has been instrumental in providing live news and key information about the war. Psychotherapist Anna Shyichuk, coordinator of mental health and psychosocial support for Right to Protection, explains,

“In this difficult time, we must all be aware of acute stress and trauma. To help yourself and your loved ones in critical moments. That is why we pay much attention to educational content: lectures, and articles. Illustrations are a very important tool in this context because creativity penetrates the reader’s heart and is easy to remember.”

The 7 Squad

The 7 Squad is a charitable organization founded at the beginning of the war. A group of friends in Ivano-Frankivsk immediately recognized the need to support the Ukrainian military and, with the help of social networks, began informally collecting money and donations for the local military air unit where their friends were serving. The response was profound. Requests and donations—everything from underwear to Soviet helmets, baby formula to ammunition—increased almost overnight, leading the group to apply for official charitable status from the government after just one month. This status allows the organization to operate with more transparency and work with Ukrainian and international partners.

Friends with the group of co-founders from her hometown, Nata recently created an illustration for the 7 Squad to represent their important work. Today, the organization consists of 14 volunteers who have direct lines of communication to Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines. They work tirelessly, seven days per week, to source military equipment for 11 special forces and provide humanitarian support to the cities and villages that have suffered most from Russian aggression.

“We are supported by ordinary Ukrainians as well as companies and patrons. Much of the funding comes from abroad – France, Switzerland, England, Poland, the USA, and others. Every day we buy, ship, sort, pack, and deliver things that give hope and morally support our strong army. We sincerely believe in our victory. Our path is difficult and long—as well as the path of every Ukrainian now. But we will continue to do what we do. Until the day of our victory. We are fighting not only for freedom. We are fighting for the lives and future of our children.”

– Oksana Olesnevych, co-founder of 7 Squad

The 7 Squad is Nata’s preferred channel for donating money to support her native Ukraine. If you would like to do the same, visit the website to learn more and find the donation links.