"Our mission is to make the world inclusive." The Yom-Yom Center in St. Petersburg needs your support.

The Yom-Yom Inclusive Center, which provides care for children with special needs and counseling for their families, lacks funds to cover rent and tutoring costs. The center relies on private donations, but in recent years dues fell sharply. 

"It all started with COVID, when in-person groups were significantly reduced. With the start of the Secondary Educational Institution, many people left, including some of our trusted partners. Also, unlike other organizations, we don't have a specific pain point—well, inclusion, well, learning together. But that's our mission," said Olga, Lily for the Field of View project. 

Yom-Yom has been operating in St. Petersburg since 2013. The center provides free consultations to families with special needs children and trains specialized specialists. Over the years, it has served thousands of families and tutors from 32 regions of the country. A separate day group is also available, where typical and special needs children study together. 

"Special children need more than just medical rehabilitation. They need friendship and social interaction, just like ordinary kids. Our students will grow up and rule the world," explains Lilia, the center's fundraising specialist. 

She would like inclusion to stop being just a tick box in Russia. 

"Our mentality is so prevalent in hiding people and children; it's shameful, almost embarrassing. But they're just kids who want to grow and play. At our center, they can live their childhoods carefree. And parents can breathe a sigh of relief, be empowered, and not constantly stress over whether they'll accept their child or not, whether they'll yell at them or not. Our mission is to make the world an inclusive place." 
The center needs financial assistance—they don't have enough money to rent the space and pay tutors. You can donate by link.