For the third time, the Sestry.eu platform has presented the “Sisterhood Portraits” awards. This year also marked the first-ever presentation of a Special Award, which was granted to Sister Małgorzata Chmielewska from the Domy Wspólnoty Chleb Życia Foundation.
The jury selected 13 nominees, including six Polish women and seven Ukrainian women. The Ukrainian laureate was Andriana Susak-Arekhta, a soldier and leader of the Veteranka Movement. She not only serves on the front line but also helps shape reforms within the military and advocates for her country’s interests abroad. Together with her team, she succeeded in opening 63 combat positions to women, strengthening social protection measures, ensuring proper equipment, and improving medical support. After being seriously wounded, she returned to service, proving that resilience is not the absence of pain, but the ability to keep moving forward.
The Polish laureate was Olga Solarz, a volunteer, ethnologist, and author of, among other works, the book Dzikie pole. Wojenna opowieść [eng. “Wild Field: A War Story” – edit. note]. Since 2014, she has been supporting the Ukrainian army. She also travels on humanitarian missions to small towns and villages in eastern Ukraine, where she conducts field research and gathers evidence showing that, contrary to Russian propaganda, the overwhelming majority of local residents are Ukrainian-speaking.
The Readers’ Choice Award went to Kateryna Polishchuk, known as “Ptashka” (“Birdie”). She has become a symbol of Mariupol’s resilience. As a combat medic, she saved wounded soldiers at Azovstal despite being wounded herself. She endured captivity and continues her mission today by preserving the memory of those who never returned.
For the first time this year, the jury decided to honour one of the nominees with a Special Award. It was presented to Małgorzata Chmielewska, a philanthropist and director of the Domy Wspólnoty Chleb Życia Foundation. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, she has supported refugees from Ukraine by providing shelter in the homes she runs for elderly people, persons with disabilities, and people experiencing homelessness.
The Sisterhood Portraits 2026 awards were presented during a gala ceremony held at Teatr Studio in Warsaw.
Source: press.pl
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In other media:
- Sestry: Sestry announced the winners of the third edition of the “Sisterhood Portraits 2026” awards (10 March 2026)
- UNGC: “Sisterhood Portraits 2026” awards presented (10 March 2026)
- PZU Foundation: Sisterhood Portraits 2026 (10 March 2026)
- PAP: Olga Solarz and Andriana Susak awarded the Ukrainian-Polish “Sisterhood Portraits” prize (10 March 2026)
