The Salvation Army in Ukraine conducts its ministry to the suffering humanity in Ukraine despite all the heavy shelling that happens every day all over Ukraine. This unprovoked war united entire civilized world in supporting and protecting Ukraine and its citizens.
The Salvation Army in Ukraine is thankful to its supporters, volunteers and donors for making Christmas celebration possible for the children who live close to the border with Belarus. In fact, these villages were occupied within hours as the full-scale war began on February 24th, 2022, and de-occupied within the last once.
The people in these villages still recovering from occupation. There are a lot of destroyed houses in these remote villages, gas and electricity supplies have not been recovered yet due to the scale of demolitions. These, of course, affects the heating supplies and many other aspects of normal peaceful life that was destroyed on February 24th, 2022.
Local residents admitted that the situation with work got a lot worse since the beginning of the war, as many businesses are struggling to survive. One of the villages has only one employer left – local milk farm that belongs to the local family. Those who cannot find jobs locally, leave for better to some bigger villages, towns or cities.
It is important that The Salvation Army in Ukraine comes to the villages like these on regular basis to support people in need with the resources available through our supporters and donors. It was great to see children and teenagers participating with a great passion and enthusiasm in our events. It was also a great opportunity to express our love and tell them about the Good News and help the attendees to gained confidence that Jesus created the world for good.
Of course, Christmas celebration must be accompanied by Christmas presents. It was great to see lots of happy faces during our visits.
The Salvation Army in Ukraine is expressing its gratitude to all the supporters, friends, volunteers, donors, and everybody who makes visits like these possible.
May God bless people in need and those who support them.
Amen!
Words by Ivan Berezkin
The Salvation Army
Eastern Europe Territory