I Went to Ukraine Today!
Well, I was only there for about an hour…just enough time to walk from Romania over to Ukraine. It was a beautiful, but crisp day – and it was great to be back on Ukrainian soil, if only for a little while.
Inna needed a Stamp
Since Inna, our Ukrainian Coordinator, was actually in Sweden the day the war began on February 24, she can not claim “refugee status” since she was not in the country during the war. So today, she had to go back into Ukraine (during the war) and then come back out immediately after getting her stamp. I decided to go with her, to catch a glimpse for myself, of what our 300 kids and guardians had to experience when we evacuated them over the past month. Of course, I did not have to endure the painful emotions that Ukrainians went through as they said goodbye to their homeland, friends, relatives, and pets as they left their country behind. Today, I was able to get a better sense of what those people have gone through just walking a seemingly long distance across the border. Many cars and trucks were waiting in line – as were many pedestrians. The sun shone bright, but there were crisp slices of wind catching our faces as we looked around. The sky was a lovely blue, but the large number of huge black crows were eerily circling and swooping, and their loud “caw-caw” could clearly be heard in the otherwise silence of stopped vehicles waiting their turn in line. It was a kind of surreal place.
Bringing Supplies Into Ukraine is no Picnic…
When Inna arrived from Sweden, she brought 4 large suitcases of supplies for Ukraine – all donated by generous friends she had made over the last month as she and 9 other Ukrainians sheltered there. We added this to the 8 huge duffels we brought from USA, mainly of medical supplies. The day before, we had also found a huge “Cash & Carry” store (which we are now club members of – at no charge!) and had bought cases of instant coffee, canned tuna, rice, sugar, sunflower oil, cookies, juice and of course, chocolate croissants. We divided this up, labelled it all, and packed it all up in Sergi’s van and he and his son Zahar as navigator, headed back into Ukraine to bring it our volunteers who would distribute it in their various geographical areas. They decided to go through Moldova, and then through Ukraine as this would shave about 3 hours off their journey. Even though we armed Sergi with all kinds of letters, saying that he was carrying humanitarian aid on behalf of Hope Now, he was stopped and delayed at both border crossings!
He Made a Way
Thank the Lord, that He made a way for Sergi’s van to get through the red-tape and he was finally back on the road inside Ukraine – probably driving rather quickly to reach at least some of our volunteers before it got too late. Night-time is the scariest time, as that is when the heaviest shelling and bombing occurs by the invaders. Half of his deliveries were already made tonight, and the rest, Lord willing, he will make tomorrow. Already, our volunteers are oohing and awwwing over boxes of anti-biotics, tourniquets, Israeli bandages, ibuprophen, First Aid Kits, and I even through in several jars of peanut butter, as an encouraging special treat. Thank you to everyone who donated these lifesaving supplies! We have updated our Amazon Wish List and are planning to ship the next load of supplies out before Easter. So, if you didn’t have the opportunity to participate before, go ahead and click the link below to see what’s on our wish list. God bless! Slava Ukraini!
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Joy Comes in the Morning
Life Goes On
In every country around the world, and especially in Ukraine, young people are the future of the nation. A year ago, many Ukrainians were simply unable to fathom the idea of making plans. The idea of “tomorrow” for many people was just too uncertain and too far away. Over the past several months, however, a new sentiment of “just living life” has got many young people bravely making plans for the next phase of their lives.
Another Day, Another Death
Maybe you are sick of hearing about Bakhmut.
The battle of Bakhmut has already claimed 30,000 lives.
Including two of our precious Ukrainian sons.
And it has not been won yet.
