Transformation of the Activities of Officers Houses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during a Special Period

Abstract

The article examines the impact of Russian armed aggression against the Ukrainian state on the transformation of approaches to psychological, cultural, and spiritual support for military personnel and their families within the scope and responsibilities of officers' houses during a special period, using the example of the 58th Officers’ House. The study explores the interaction of officers’ house staff with military units, state and local authorities, public organizations, volunteers, and cultural figures. In particular, the implementation of psychological, cultural, and spiritual directions in the work with servicemen, veterans, and their families is analyzed. Special attention is given to the experience of implementing a pilot project in the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the organization and functioning of the public center “VYBIR: Space for Defenders,” with recommendations for improving the center’s activities and scaling it to other garrison officers’ houses. The article also examines the activities of the officers’ house museum, focusing on the transformation of exhibition approaches and the addition of new artifacts from the Russian-Ukrainian war. Furthermore, the study analyzes the main tasks of the 58th Officers’ House: organizing concerts for mobilized servicemen at military training grounds and combat zones, providing leisure activities for wounded soldiers undergoing treatment and rehabilitation, cooperating with volunteer and public organizations, and organizing performances with the student theater “OKO.” New approaches to engaging a young audience in the context of national-patriotic education using the officers’ house museum collections are also discussed.