The Phoenix today
Safety, routine and a community
Families arrive with very little. At The Phoenix they find a safe home and the support to stand on their own feet again. The building is the former residence of Count Stanisław Skarbek, and room by room it is becoming a fully accessible home for long-term use.
What we provide every family
- Safe housing
- Utilities
- Daily meals
- Hygiene products
- Clothing
- Basic medications
- Equipped rooms
- Inclusive bathrooms
- School transport
- Children's spaces
- Job training
- Language courses
A tested model
The Phoenix has piloted a community-based psychosocial support model with displaced families. This has allowed us to:
- test the therapeutic community model in real-life conditions
- prepare selected residents as peer facilitators for future veteran family programs
- establish routines and community living that work
- adapt the building step by step for long-term use
Peer support has started
Families learning from each other
In October 2026 we hosted a peer support seminar led by Sandra Maric, a Croatian trainer who facilitates groups for refugees, veterans and trauma survivors. Residents have met in two support groups since.
Peer support seminar at The Phoenix, October 2026
The return home
They fought for our future. Now it's our turn to help them rebuild theirs.
Many veterans complete physical rehabilitation, receive prosthetics and begin the process of returning to civilian life. The return home can bring new challenges for the whole family.
- 1Service
Defending their country.
- 2Rehabilitation
Medical care, physical rehabilitation and, for some, prosthetics.
- 3Return home
A new daily reality for the veteran and the family. This is where The Phoenix focuses.
- 4Build a future
Routines, relationships, skills and purpose. The Phoenix supports this stage too.
Where The Phoenix helps
The family challenge
A homecoming changes the whole family
Family members must adapt to changed circumstances, relationships need rebuilding, and everyone must learn to navigate a new daily reality together.
Veterans after rehabilitation
A family is a team
The Phoenix focuses not only on the veteran, but on the entire family unit by developing teamwork.
We understand that welcoming someone back home is not the responsibility of one person. Coming home is a complex situation, and it calls for solutions that involve the whole family. The Phoenix is already here, so this transition does not have to happen in isolation.
The program In development
The Veteran Family Reintegration Program
The next step after physical rehabilitation. The whole family takes part, because the whole family lives with the consequences of war. The program has not launched yet: it builds on the home and the model The Phoenix already runs every day.
Individual, group and family counseling from qualified professionals.
Communication, trust, triggers, and roles that fit the family now.
Veterans learning from veterans, with former residents as mentors.
Computer and AI skills, languages, CVs and links with employers.
Residents cook, clean and care for their shared home from day one.
Accessible gardening, animal care and a dehydrated-food kitchen.
Safety, trust, routine and a family plan.
Communication, resilience and practical independence.
Skills, work readiness and a plan for life after The Phoenix.
The next step after rehabilitation
Volunteer Action intends to develop referral cooperation with the Superhumans and Unbroken rehabilitation centers in Lviv, so families can come to The Phoenix when rehabilitation ends.
Professional care, clear limits
Clinical care is provided or supervised by qualified professionals. Volunteers teach and facilitate; they do not treat. Taking part is always voluntary.
The Veterans' Rooms In development
A place for families to reconnect
The pilot veterans' floor turns the 3rd floor into 7 fully accessible family units. With 3-month stays, each room can welcome about four families a year. Fourteen rooms are planned in total, for 56 families every year.
Concept renders of a Veterans' Room
What one room includes
- Complete renovation
- New electrical system
- New water and drainage
- New heating
- Accessibility
- Accessible equipment
- Accessible kitchenette
- Accessible bathroom
- Floor expansion from 43 m² to 70 m²
- In-room lift
- New windows
- 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen
Help build the next Veterans' Room.
See how to give