Orlando Bloom visits war-affected children in Ukraine: they ‘need to get their childhood back’

Orlando Bloom shares snippets from his recent trip to Ukraine, his first visit to the country since 2016.

The ‘Lord of the Rings’ actor announced he arrived in Ukraine on Sunday as part of a trip with UNICEF, during which he will learn more about how the ongoing conflict with Russia has affected the country’s children.

Bloom shared photos and videos of his trip on Instagram, saying he visited the UNICEF-supported Splino Center and was “lucky to hear children laughing there”.

“Spilno means ‘together’ in Ukrainian and there are more than 180 such centers here. The one I visited today was built at the bottom of the metro to ensure their safety,” he wrote.

“For a few hours each day, parents can drop off their young children and give them a sense of normalcy to play games and just be kids.”

“There were also plenty of art supplies and craft materials, allowing them to express themselves creatively, away from the pressures of growing up in a war zone. Children in Ukraine need to find their childhood,” he continued.

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UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Orlando Bloom prepares a candle with Milana, 8, and her sister Alisa, 3, during a lesson at a UNICEF Spilno Child Spot at a metro station in Kyiv, Kiev Ukraine. (© UNICEF/UN0819994/Skyba)

While in Ukraine, Bloom also visited the home of a family living in Demydiv.

The family consisted of five children aged between eight and 27, as well as four other children whom the parents, Natalia and Yuri, took in between the ages of four and eight.

It’s unclear under what circumstances the four siblings were welcomed into the family, but Bloom warned in his Instagram caption, “more parents will follow in Natalia and Yurii’s footsteps and take these children to loving homes” as the war causes more children to become orphans.

“They are super humans. They told me this war taught them one thing…that family matters most,” Bloom wrote of Natalia and Yuri. “When they had to flee their home after the war escalated last year, they took very little as they said they needed nothing but their children.”

Bloom’s fiancée Katy Perry commented on his social media posts, praising the actor’s actions, writing “you are unique my love” and “family matters most”.

Bloom warned that many children would be orphaned if the war continued, and he hoped people would be ready to welcome those children. (© UNICEF/UN0820048/Skyba)

During her visit, Bloom also had a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during which they discussed the future of the country and what more can be done to support displaced children.

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“So encouraging, I mean, in many ways, to see the remarkably stoic nature of the Ukrainian people,” Bloom told Zelenskyy. “And of course your message, which I think is reflected in their courage and in their determination and in their perseverance and their resilience is right… To see the children, to see in their eyes – it’s palpable, the anxiety – and yet the strength of the Ukrainian people is something really impressive, in truth. And of course, you know, your message is the reason for it, so it is remarkable how you are holding this country.

Zelenskyy then thanked Bloom for the visit, telling him that using his platform to raise awareness and get the message out to his fans meant a lot to him and the people of Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Bloom for using his platform for a good cause. (© UNICEF/UN0820208/Skyba)

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According to Zelenskyy, school-aged children cannot go to school because many of their school buildings have been destroyed, leaving “nearly 2.7 million Ukrainian school children” to study online.