Kryvyi Rih resident bakes food for Ukrainian soldiers for fourth year running
Olga Bulenoka from Kryvyi Rih has spent nearly four years baking food at home for Ukrainian soldiers, who often distrust food from strangers after poisoning attempts at the front.
For nearly four years, Olga Bulenoka, a resident of Kryvyi Rih, has been baking and preparing food almost daily for soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Soldiers affectionately call her baked goods "mom's cakes," and many travel specifically to Kryvyi Rih to pick up their next batch.
Trust as a matter of safety
According to Delfi, soldiers at the front have at times been targeted with tampered food — pieces of glass have reportedly been found in pastries, and metal staples in savory pies. Because of this, many soldiers refuse food from unfamiliar sources and specifically request deliveries from Olga, whose baking they trust.
No professional equipment, just dedication
Olga does all her baking in an ordinary family apartment — there is no professional kitchen, no special equipment, and no staff helping her. All she has is an old oven and herself. A chair sits in the kitchen next to the oven, where she sometimes rests briefly between baking sessions.
The hardest year
Her workload was especially intense in the first year following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when she reportedly slept only two to three hours a night while constantly preparing the next batch of pies. Despite health problems that have repeatedly landed her in hospital, Olga continues her work without sparing herself, determined to provide soldiers with food they can trust.
