Ukraine Under Siege

Written by Marty Stan

I just returned from Ukraine after participating in a small team that was led by my colleague who is the Director of Mercy Projects (MP) as well as the Director of Freeway Kyiv(FK). MP has been working in Ukraine for 30+ years offering family sponsorships for at-risk families that includes adopted children and foster children. FK is a Ukraine-based NGO that provides relief to at-risk families which have been affected by the current war with Russia which truly began in 2014. The objectives for this trip were multi-faceted including delivering aid to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP)Families, encouraging Ukrainian pastors, and ministering to Ukrainian Army commanders and women soldiers. Our first stop was in western Ukraine to have meetings with Ukraine-based NGO “ANTS-UA” which helps internally displaced families. They provide temporary shelter for IDP families along with a host of other services for those suffering from the war. They have been doing a tremendous work since the war started. They have such a heart for their own people and they continue to make a profound impact on the lives of suffering families. We look forward to working with them for the foreseeable future as the war rages on.

At A.N.T.S. meeting with the staff of Mercy Projects

Following our meetings with ANTS.UA we traveled to Kyiv, the capital city, in order to conduct planning meetings, attend New Life Church, and load up supplies to be delivered to

the Cherkasy and Dnipropetrovsk regions in south-central and eastern Ukraine. These regions are under attack from the Russian military experiencing a barrage of drones, missiles, and rockets. We spent time in Cherkasy meeting with internally displaced families and delivering supplies to them.

Bringing aid to residents of the villages of Cherkasy

Most of these families have a father that is still working a job in the area that they were displaced from while the mother and kids are now living in a small home that is provided for them by the new community. It’s a difficult life because dad is usually gone trying to earn money while mom is trying to get the kids into a new school in another town like Cherkasy. Their lives are completely upside down. Their resilience is to be commended. The families are very grateful to receive seeds for garden vegetables, clothes, and other items. We were moved to tears when meeting and praying for these families.

Finally we ventured to Dnipropetrovsk province to the city of Dnipro. Dnipro is a city of roughly a million people and Ukraine’s fourth largest city. This city is currently under constant attack by Russian missiles and drones. We heard air raid sirens the entire time that we were there. We ministered along side a long-time colleague who is Ukraine’s first female military chaplain. “Sasha” is a very inspiring lady that has counted the cost of ministering in war zones throughout Ukraine. We delivered supplies to the Director of Surgery at a local hospital that is mostly full of soldiers being treated for war injuries and illnesses.

Marty, the Doctor, Jeff and our friend Sasha, a Ukrainian military Chaplain

We also had the opportunity to meet with 20+ army commanders and approximately 40 female soldiers. The ladies ranged in age from early 20s-50s. The ladies volunteered to serve as soldiers and the men commanders were from all walks of life. Some were career soldiers and most were conscripted following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. We had meetings with them in the Chaplain’s Tent and of course the air raid sirens were blaring as usual. Photos were restricted for obvious reasons. The lives of these courageous soldiers will never be forgotten as we conducted question and answer sessions and prayed for them.

One of our last meetings was with a local organization that was founded to serve families of war “Heroes”. The families that are served by this organization have all lost family members in the war. We spoke with them and prayed with them as they told stories of their family members that were killed in action. One of the most gripping stories was from a family that was internally displaced to Dnipro from an eastern war torn city. They lost their son in the war and went on to adopt a sibling group of four very young children. Their hearts were amazing.

Finally we were privileged to stay with a young pastor and his family from a local church in Dnipro. He told us the story of how he and the other pastors in his church sent their families out of the country when they were invaded in 2022. After some months, they prayed and decided to return to Dnipro with their wives and kids to continue ministering to the people of their church. Not all of the people were able to leave during the invasion and the pastors returned to serve them. Mercy Projects’ Director “Jeff Thompson” spoke in this church on the Sunday that we were there. Needless to say this is a very courageous and dedicated church that continues to effectively minister to their people while under constant threat of losing their homes and families.

Winter Camp in Ukraine