Chyhyryn Program Information

Thank you for your interest in Sebastopol World Friends’ Ukraine program! Since 1993, Sebastopol, California and Chyhyryn, Ukraine have maintained a deep relationship through individual and group travel, cultural exchanges, good wishes and good projects.

Since 2022, Sebastopol Worlds Friends has been raising funds to support Chyhyryn in managing the devastating impacts of the full scale invasion of Ukraine. Located in the center of the country, Chyhyryn is relatively safe from direct attack. This has led to large numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs) fleeing from the eastern and southern war zones settling in the small city, with a pre-war population of 9000. As of June 30, 2025, SWF has raised in excess of $140,000 since the start of the full scale invasion to provide everything from medical equipment and generators, to bedding and play equipment for the local youth center.

We work very closely with our friends in Chyhyryn, relying on them to assess the most urgent needs for their community. In spring 2024, they asked SWF for help in repairing the roof of a local college dormitory where around 40 IDP’s, mostly pensioners from eastern provinces, were living. The roof had been in disrepair for many years, and as a result, the top two floors of the dormitory were uninhabitable. With the help of the nearby Cherkasy Rotary Club, the roof was repaired by summer 2024. With this investment in the dormitory building, SWF and our friends in Chyhyryn decided to focus its efforts on renovating the formerly destroyed living spaces in the building.

The Chyhyryn Dormitory Renovation Project will provide living space for up to 120 IDPs in 12 apartment blocks that each consist of 4 bedrooms, two bathrooms and a kitchen. The cost per block is approximately $22,000. As of June 2025, two blocks have been completed. By the end of 2025, we hope to have a third completed. This project would not be possible without the help of the Cherkasy Rotary, and they are committed to overseeing the buildout of the entire project.

Donate to this ongoing project here!

History of the program

When SWF began looking for a second sister city, it was felt that a city from the former Soviet Union would be interesting and educational. John Masura, a  gentleman from Sebastopol who lives in Cherkassy, Ukraine, told us about the perfect town – Chyhyryn. Not only was it small and agricultural, it, like Sebastopol, also had a history of preventing the building of a nuclear power plant.  An added bonus was its proximity to Cherkasy (sister to Santa Rosa) and Kaniv (sister to Sonoma).

In 1993 Mayor Lesych and three others from Chyhyryn, Ukraine, traveled to Sebastopol for the signing of a Sister City Agreement between the two cities. The following year a delegation of six Sebastopol adults visited Chyhyryn, paving the way for numerous delegations to travel to Chyhyryn for service projects and cultural exchanges.

Professional/Civic Delegations

In 2008 Sebastopol World Friends hosted a delegation of educators from various parts of Ukraine as part of the Open World Leadership Center | OpenWorld. It was such a positive experience for both the participants and the hosts that in 2010 Sebastopol World Friends organized an Open World delegation from our sister city, Chyhyryn. Since that time we have hosted four more Open World delegations. Over the years, through Open World, we have hosted medical professionals, educators, journalists, business leaders, farmers, emergency service workers, military leaders, and civic leaders.

Additionally, we have sent adult delegations from Sebastopol to Chyhyryn.