Orzhytsia Settlement Community

History

The history of these lands goes back to ancient times. Thus, on the territory of the Orzhytsia Neighbourhood, a lot of physical evidence of the life of Scythians, Slavic tribes (from the 1st century), as well as proto-Ukrainians from the time of Kyivan Rus (6th – 13th centuries) was discovered.

Most of the hamlets and villages of the Orzhytsia Neighbourhood were founded by Zaporozhian Cossacks in the 15th – 18th centuries on the right bank of the Orzhytsia River. Orzhytsia, with its impregnable marshes, served for some time as a Cossack Squadron Town, but after the decline of the Cossacks, it was subject to numerous raids by the Tatars.

Today, the residents of the community are proud of the Cossack history and preserve the local culture and customs.

Nature

The Orzhytsia Neighbourhood impresses with its unique nature. In the valley of the river of the same name, the Orzhytsia hydrological reserve is located. To preserve the forest massif growing on the right-bank floodplain of the river, a protected tract of Bila Shapka was created where age-old oaks, birches, maples and lindens grow. The valley of the Sula River, which flows through the territory of the community, is occupied by the Nyzhnyosulskyi National Nature Park with unique swamp flora and fauna.

Economy

The Orzhytsia community is relatively small in terms of area and population. There are no large industrial enterprises, but agricultural production is strongly developed. About 40 agricultural enterprises, farms and private entrepreneurs operate on 63,142 hectares of agricultural land. Agricultural enterprises of the community grow grain, leguminous, industrial and fodder crops. Dairy cattle and pig breeding is also developing here. In the village of Denysivka, a family dairy farm of 20 cows, built and equipped with the support of international donors, has been successfully operating for the seventh year. Nut orchards planted on 20 hectares by the owners of the Avelana farm in the village of Yabluneve produce first crops.

The largest enterprise of the community is Orzhytsia Dairy Factory LLC, which supplies products not only to the stores in the Poltava region, but also to neighbouring regions.

Community and War

During the 6 months of the war, about 4,000 refugees passed through the community in transit, and up to 2,000 stayed here. The community actively takes care of internally displaced persons and provides the necessary humanitarian aid. The community allocated 6 places for compact living of internally displaced persons, five of which are already equipped for permanent living.

Since the first month of the war, the Orzhysk settlement council has been preparing a food reserve for the needs of the community’s residents. It includes socially significant food products – flour, cereals, oil, meat, which were provided by the agricultural producers of the community. A big challenge for the community is preparation for the upcoming heating season.

The community also actively supports compatriots who are fighting in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine today – charity fairs and events are held to provide the military with everything they need.

Head of the Community

Olena Sydorenko has been elected head of the Orzhytsia community since 2015. A teacher of Ukrainian Language and Literature, she pays special attention to the development of education and opportunities for young people.

Every morning our hearts miss a beat and fill with hope at the words “the enemy is conducting a defensive operation” or “the enemy was conducting offensive battles, but was unsuccessful and withdrew”… Our blood turns to ice when we hear “the enemy achieved some success”… There are not just battles, and not even meters of our territory behind these words, but the lives of our boys.
Killed, wounded, can’t be contacted, went missing… And now you’re trembling and dialling the number of the Military Commissariat. “Everything is fine”. This means that our fighters are not in these terrible reports. It means another day begins.”

from the social networks of Olena Sydorenko, head of the Orzhytsia community.

A vision of the future

The Orzhytsia community strives to develop its own agricultural, processing, cultural and tourist potential and is interested in the development of international partnership in these areas.

List of Sources:

• Official website of the Orzhytsia Settlement Council
• Wikipedia