Bringing comfort to weary Ukrainians

Editor's note: Only first names of Ukrainians are used in this article for their security.

As the Russian military’s invasion of Ukraine drags on into another year in February, Ukrainians are increasingly tired, hungry and traumatized, say Roman, the executive director of the Association of Mennonite Brethren Church of Ukraine (AMBCU).

The denomination continues to provide canned meat, food parcels, hygiene supplies or trauma healing activities to thousands of Ukrainians. Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) supports their efforts with supplies and funding as the church works between the front lines and the western region.

“The aim of our church now is to help the suffering,” says Roman. Most of the people AMBCU serves are elderly people. Some couldn’t leave or didn’t leave their hometowns regardless of the violence and others have relocated.

Because of the war, prices and taxes are rising in relation to salaries, he says. Government pensions given to older people are about $50 to $60 per month, which is not enough for their basic needs.

“Sometimes these small food parcels for persons (are) all they have to get through for several days. Sometimes they don’t have anything to eat,” Roman says.

Emotional burdens are heavy too. “Almost in every household, there is someone who has been drafted. Every person knows someone or several people who were killed in the war,” he says.

In addition to AMBCU, MCC works with 11 other faith-based or community-based organizations. These partners are providing health care, food, hygiene supplies, psychological support, education or care for Ukrainians who are disabled or elderly.

Many Ukrainians need psychological support because of the war’s trauma, says David Driver, an MCC representative with his wife, Liz Driver, who work from Poland. MCC staff and partners who are working in Ukraine also need emotional support as they continue to serve in very difficult circumstances.

At New Hope Center, psychologists and other staff provide emotional and psychological support near the front lines in Zaporizhzhia. They offer group and individual therapy for parents and children. Group therapy can include working with art and clay and learning stress reduction activities.

The staff also is aware of war’s effect on them and the secondary trauma they experience from their work. MCC supports two retreats for New Hope staff each year in a safe area so the staff can pray as a team, breathe fresh air, walk in the forest and undergo programs for their own emotional and physical health. 

For some families, the war has compounded problems they were dealing with before the war. In the southcentral city of Nikopol, Yulia takes care of her 17-year-old son, Rostyslav, who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Her husband left her when Rostyslav and his sibling were young, which led her into episodes of deep depression. 

While the Russian military was shelling Nikopol, Rostyslav’s epilepsy attacks worsened to the point where an ambulance sometimes needed to be called three or four times a day. The company where Yulia worked closed because of the war. Her new job at a water bottling plant is more difficult for her and is in the most shelled part of the city.

In addition, because of bureaucratic reasons, the electricity supplier imposed a fine on the house where the family lives. Therefore, all accounts, including Rostyslav's bank account for his disability pension, were frozen to pay the fine.

Yulia turned to a church where she learned about New Life Charitable Fund, a faith-based partner that surrounded her with support as part of their distribution of MCC-supported supplies for about 20,000 people. 

They gave her food, diapers, hygiene products and comforters as well as legal and spiritual support. The comprehensive support gave her hope that her family will be able to survive the crisis, New Life staff report. 

Many Ukrainians are seeking spiritual help as the war drags on, says Roman. As AMBCU’s congregations were scattered or buildings destroyed because of the war, members started new churches. As of December 2024, he estimates about 70% of people attending the church’s 27 congregations, including church plants and those meeting at shelters, are newcomers.

“During problems and persecution, people turn to God. I can see that people have become more sincere and open. They have become enabled more to serve others,” he says. “In our churches, we serve other people who have suffered through the war. We are in need ourselves, but we are trying to serve others. I think this is the meaning of Christian life in such difficult times.”

The canned meat, food, comforters and hygiene supplies from MCC helps the church serve in very practical ways, Roman says. Though AMBCU does not combine sharing the gospel with distributions, people are drawn to the church as they see the kindness of the staff and volunteers.