Together Forever marked its anniversary this autumn, with donations made in honour of the occasion raising enough to fund treatment for two of the children in its care. It is hard to imagine a more fitting way to celebrate a decade of work for a charity that measures the passing years in the names of children who have finally returned home, to school and to everyday life.

How It All Began

For Sergey Stopnevich, founder of the financial corporation Wise Wolves and a father of six, the charity’s story began with his daughter, Masha. She needed two exceptionally complex neurosurgical operations that could not, at the time, be performed in Russia. The family turned to a German clinic, where surgeons successfully carried out both procedures.

‘Those days changed our lives forever,’ Sergey Stopnevich recalls. ‘The fear, the uncertainty, the helplessness, everything a parent feels when their child is fighting for their life, left a profound mark on me. Once my daughter recovered, I realised I could not simply carry on as though nothing had happened. I felt a responsibility to give that experience meaning and turn it into a mission.’

And so, in 2016, as the family moved to Cyprus, Together Forever was registered in Limassol. Securing non-profit status proved far from straightforward, and the charity became one of the island’s first Russian-speaking initiatives of its kind. At its heart lay a simple belief: no family should have to face such an ordeal alone, and every child, regardless of where they were born or their financial circumstances, deserves access to specialist medical care.

Ten Years in Numbers

Over the past decade, Together Forever has raised more than €2.5 million. Every donation goes exclusively towards the children’s treatment, while the Stopnevich family personally covers the charity’s running costs. That money has already funded 71 neurosurgical operations, 41 courses of rehabilitation, 27 complex diagnostic assessments and two online consultations with leading specialists in their fields. In total, 111 children have received the charity’s help.

The charity supports children with serious neurological conditions affecting the brain and spinal cord, including spina bifida, moyamoya disease, and complex forms of epilepsy and hydrocephalus. Families often approach it after unsuccessful operations, when a child needs further surgery requiring a markedly higher level of expertise. The children come from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan and other countries. They receive treatment at leading clinics in Europe, Israel and the United States, sometimes from specialists whose expertise is shared by only a handful of people worldwide.

One of the rarest and most dangerous conditions the charity encounters is moyamoya disease. It causes the brain’s major arteries to narrow progressively and become blocked, compromising its blood supply. In children, this manifests as strokes, recurrent neurological episodes and a gradual loss of motor and cognitive function. Without surgery, the disease progresses relentlessly. The condition is exceptionally rare, with around one new case per 200,000 people each year in Asian countries, and approximately one per million in Europe and America. The charity helps children with moyamoya gain access to the Children’s Moyamoya Centre in Zurich, the only centre of its kind, where neurosurgeons perform revascularization surgery, creating new routes for blood to reach the brain and bypassing the affected vessels. This is an exceptionally demanding procedure requiring highly specialized expertise. Several children supported by the charity have already undergone the treatment. For their families, the operation has marked the beginning of a new chapter in their child’s life.

Among all the cases the charity has encountered over the past decade, the story of the Patoska family, Orthodox Christians from Moldova, astonishes even experienced doctors. The father sings in the church choir. The mother works as a cleaner at the same church. They have ten children. Four of their daughters have moyamoya disease. The charity has already helped two of them, Salomia and Ira, receive life-saving treatment in Zurich. Today, they lead full lives. This family’s story shows that even the rarest diagnosis need not be a life sentence when there are people willing to help.

How the Support Works

The charity works on a case-by-case basis. A family completes a questionnaire and submits medical records, along with an invoice from the clinic they have chosen on their doctors’ recommendation. An individual fundraising appeal is then launched, and the charity’s team supports the child throughout the process. Donors always know exactly whom they are helping and can later see what their support has made possible: photographs of children after treatment, their progress in learning new skills, their return to favourite activities, or simply news of how they are growing and developing.

The charity’s day-to-day work is led by its director, Ekaterina Balandina, alongside a small team responsible for paperwork, liaising with families and promoting fundraising appeals. Wise Wolves provides legal and accounting support free of charge, allowing every euro raised to go towards treatment.

‘Every request for help begins with a conversation with the parents,’ Ekaterina explains. ‘Most families come to us at a point when they feel every door has closed. We give them hope and help raise the money for their child’s treatment. Over ten years, we have learnt to do this quickly, but each case remains deeply personal, both for the family and for our entire team.’

For her, the anniversary evening offered the clearest possible reminder that people are the charity’s foundation. ‘On the charity’s birthday, we unexpectedly received the most meaningful gift imaginable. Thanks to donations made in honour of the anniversary, we reached the targets for two fundraising appeals, and for two families, our celebration marked the beginning of a new chapter in their child’s life.’

A Family Endeavour and the Next Generation

Together Forever has been a family endeavour from the outset. Sergey’s wife, Anastasia, supports the charity’s mission, sits on its board of directors and takes an active part in its work. Their older children, Artyom and Ksenia, have also joined the board. Sergey firmly believes that charity begins at home: children who see their parents caring for others carry that kindness into adult life. As Sergey puts it, ‘For us, Together Forever is more than a charitable organization: it is one large family supporting other families.’

Over ten years, a substantial community has grown around the charity. Its members go hiking together and organize charity workshops, auctions, events, and Christmas gatherings. The Wise Wolves team has become part of this community, with support for the charity long embedded in the company’s culture.

Together Forever’s first decade has shown how one family’s experience can grow into a cause that brings together hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of people across different countries. The charity begins its second decade with the same belief that inspired its beginnings. Sergey sums it up: ‘When you realise that somewhere in the world a child is smiling because people chose to help, you understand the true meaning of the words Together Forever.’

Photographs courtesy of Together Forever.

To support the children in the charity’s care, visit together-forever.fund. You can choose an individual child and donate towards their treatment, or become a regular friend of the charity with a monthly donation.

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