Photometer from St. Nicholas

On St. Nicholas’s Day Mykolaiv held for the sixth time the charity evening under the patronage of Mayor Volodymyr Chaika. Every willing person could donate some money to save the lives of young children. Mayor Chaika also made his contribution by singing during the concert and taking an active part in the charity auction, which presented the works of young residents of Mykolaiv.

It was mentioned that this kind of charity evenings for the City Children’s Hospital No.2 allowed buying an artificial lung ventilation apparatus and a portative ultrasound scanner. Last year the residents of Mykolaiv donated over 127,000 hryvnias to help young patients.

At the moment the hospital needs a photometer, a modern biochemical apparatus, which can analyze 46 blood indices to provide aid for children in grave condition, as well as the medic diagnostic complex “Sphere-4,” which makes electric cardiogram, spirogram, and analyzes all the parameters of lungs’ activity.

At the beginning of the charity concert the deputy director general of Nibulon Company Larysa Buryk granted to the chief doctor of the 2nd Children’s Hospital Oleksandr Plitkin a certificate for 600,000 hryvnias. “I am sure this is not the last time we are giving assistance and we will continue to cooperate with you in this direction on a regular basis,” Ms. Buryk assured. The company has already helped by the resuscitation surgery monitor and a surgery table for babies. Thus, the medical institution will acquire a modern ultrasound scanner, electric cardiograph, sterilizer, and other necessary equipment.

To raise as much money as possible, besides the concert an auction has been traditionally organized, during which every guest was able to buy an item, created by the city’s masters and children. This time the auction presented six items, the pictures by young Mykolaiv artists, students and graduates of Children’s Art School. The starting price of every item was 100 hryvnias. The first work, Nostalgia for Picasso by Andrii Sihuntsev was bought for 1,600 hryvnias. The next item Carol Singers by Khrystyna Burnashova was sold for 1,200 hryvnias. The third item, A Still Life with an Amphora by 5th grade student Inna Zinkevych was bought for 1,600. The next two items, Italian Balcony by Volodymyr Buhaienko, husband of the Mykolaiv oblast councilor Tamila Buhaienko, and Author’s Painting by Svitlana Stasiuk (composed of three parts: a small bucket, a box, and a painting) were sold for 1,300 and 1,000 hryvnias, respectively. The least and the most expensive item was the diptych consisting of two still lifes, A Still Life with Motley Fabric and A Still Life with Garlic and Pumpkin, by Olena Dzhanhirova. The item was purchases for 2,600 hryvnias.

The charity evening this year included a theater performance, which showed the adventures of a foreigner who came to Mykolaiv from “sunny” Great Britain. Practically all the roles in the performance were played by famous residents of Mykolaiv, businessmen, workers of culture, and representatives of the authorities. What was the most interesting, they were playing themselves. During the concert the Mykolaiv Oblast councilors divided into singers and those who recited verse. It should be underlined that at the charity concert Mayor Chaika sang for the first time for broad public the song “I Marvel at the Sky and the First Thought I am Wondering…” (as a reminder: Volodymyr Chaika’s traditional song is “White Wings” by Obodzynsky).

On the whole, St. Nicholas Charity Concert proved that Mykolaiv has strong traditions of patronage. It also proved that Mykolaiv residents have kind hearts and compassionate souls. Owing to this it was possible to raise 88,262 hryvnias for Mykolaiv-based Children’s Hospital No. 2.