The Last Home
According to the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine there are about seven million people of retirement age. Every fifth of them is alone. At the same time it’s hard to get to a geriatric house: there are not enough such centres and, besides, it costs much. The photos bellow show the life of the inhabitants of the geriatric home in Hola Prystan (Kherson Oblast, Ukraine).
Inhabitants of the geriatric centre play cards in the hall of their home.
Volodymyr is playing bayan for his wife Nina in the corridor of the house for aged. They met each other at this house and married a year ago.
Dr. Vera sees the patient, an inhabitant of the geriatric centre.
Halyna, inhabitant of the house for aged in her room. As she was a child she was brought to the nazis concentration camp.
Valentyna and Volodymyr in their room in the geriatric centre. They live together for 51 years.
Oleksandra, inhabitant of the centre in her room.
People’s choir of the house for aged sings Ukrainian songs.
Maria, inhabitant of the geriatric centre in her room.
Inhabitants of the centre are listening to the people’s chorus in the concert hall.
Victor, inhabitant of the geriatric centre in his room. He lived there with his wife, who died a few years ago.
A chapel in the geriatric centre. Every Monday a priest visits centre’s inhabitants.
Valentyna and Oleksiy, inhabitants of the geriatric centre in their room. They moved from Zburievka village to Hola Prystan, but their children ruined them and they had to leave their home for the geriatric centre. “But we don’t complain”, they say.
An inhabitant of the house for aged, who has spent her childhood in the nazis concentration camp. She’s still afraid of unknown people, food in the canteen and injectors.
Librarian of the geriatric centre at her working place. “I am retired, but still work. Every morning I wake up early, take my bicycle and go to work”.
The geriatric centre is situated outside the city and one kilometre from the city cemetery.