A Portrait of Bravery
March is Women’s History Month. Given the state of the world, I can’t think of a better woman to highlight today. Thanks for stopping by, I hope you find her as inspiring as I do.
Olena Kyiashko was born on February 6, 1978 in Kryvyi Rih, Ukrainian SSR, also known as Krivoy Rog, a city in central Ukraine. Her mother was an engineer and manager in a construction company and her father a professor in a technical school. We know very little about her childhood. Olena studied at Kryvyi Rih National University and graduated with a specialist diploma in Urban and Construction Management. She was an astute and academically gifted student of architecture at the Faculty of Civil Engineering at Kryvyi Rih National University, while her husband-to-be studied law.Olena also graduated from a music school where she studied piano. She is an accomplished pianist.
They knew each other in high school, but while they were students at the university, she developed a deep friendship with her future husband, Volodymyr Zelensky. While Olena studied architecture, Volodymyr pursued a degree in law. The couple dated for eight years and married in 2003. They have two children, a daughter Oleksandra (born on 15 July 2004) and a son Kyrylo (born on 21 January 2013).
Olena Zelenska (surnames are gendered in Slavic languages) is a long time comedy writer, popular screenwriter, and editor on the leading prime time satirical comedy show aimed at women Kvartal 95, (a publicly held television entertainment production company operating in Ukraine since 2003). But ever since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, Olena suddenly found herself center stage in a tragedy.
The First Lady of the Ukraine is best known for her philanthropic activities. ELLE 100 Women, the 2022 BBC 100 Women, and Financial Express’ 25 most influential women worldwide all include her in their lists of notable women.
There have been many interviews with the couple over the years and they all clearly illustrate their support for each other and how they always offer admiration and praise to one another. They lead a busy but happy married life. They push each other to grow in their respective work endeavors and never hesitate to credit each other public for their successes in life.
In one interview with Vogue Magazine, Volodymyr said that his wife, Olena, has a powerful personality, and during the Russia-Ukraine war she contributed to lifting the people’s spirits and keeping their will strong. “She has a strong personality to start with. And probably she is stronger than she thought she was. And this war–well, any war is probably bound to bring out qualities you never expected to have. She is my love. But she is my greatest friend. Olena really is my best friend. She is also a patriot, and she deeply loves Ukraine. It’s true. And she is an excellent mother…Of course she is my love,but she is my greatest friend. Olena really is my best friend.”
While Volodymyr leads a nation of civilians who overnight turned into combatants, Olena has visibly carried their emotional toll. Tens of thousands of women have been on the front lines of this war and many in actual combat. Olena traveled to Washington on an unscheduled, unannounced and unofficial visit last year to visit with the Bidens and the Secretary of State Antony Blinken. While there, she also addressed a bipartisan group of lawmakers in Congress where she told stories and showed photographs for Ukraine children who were slaughtered by Russian rockets, including a four year old with Down’s Syndrome.
“I’m asking for something I would never want to ask for: I am asking for weapons—weapons that would not be used to wage a war on somebody else’s land but to protect one’s home and the right to wake up alive in that home…The female voices in this war need to be heard, need to be represented.”
In June 2022, Olena paid tribute to 200 Ukranian children that were killed in the war. She gave a moving speech to a crowd that gathered, including grieving parents, who gathered outside Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. Only a month later, the death toll rose to 300. “The whole country knows your stories, and you are not alone,” she said that day. “You should know that you are important. You were the most important people for your children. So take care of yourself for them. They would like that.”
Olena and the parents hung bells in the trees, one for each child. “The bells stood for the voices of the innocent children, so they would ring forever and be heard forever,” she said. “I was in tears the whole hour I was there.” With Russian missiles falling on civilian targets, Olena has also started an initiative to help attend to Ukrainians suffering from trauma. She’s leading an effort to train mental-health practitioners and teach first-line responders, including teachers, pharmacists, social workers, and police officers, to act as counselors. “More generally this initiative looks to improve mental health in the nation,” she said. It’s a modern response to an old-school war of aggression, a response that looks beyond simple survival to the longer-term effects.
Olena successfully introduced legislation to improve the nutritional quality and variety of food, noting proper nutrition was key for a child’s development, health and overall wellbeing. She introduced audio guides in leading museums around to world, campaigned for greater accessibility for disabled citizens, and women’s rights. She initiated Ukraine’s accession to the G7 international initiative on gender equality, and promoted the Ukrainian Women’s Congress, which works towards equal rights.
Before the war, Olena was already a staunch advocate for the vulnerable, especially children with special needs, and worked to raise awareness and fight domestic violence. Olena brought the renowned Ukrainian chef Ievgen Klopotendo to public school cafeterias where he overhauled menus, focusing on nutrition and introducing more fruits and vegetables.
Her steadfast support of her husband and the people of Ukraine has not stopped in the face of adversity as the brutal two-and-a-half year war with Russia continues, despite the fact that both she and her children are at risk of Putin’s aggressions. “Aside from being First Lady of Ukraine, I am also a writer and architect. I am also being targeted for death by Mr. Putin.”
The following is from 2024