By Laura McKillip Wood
“Surviving is just one side of the story,” says Natasha Reimer from Mulberry International. “The other side is saying goodbye to loved ones.” Fighting in cities in southern Ukraine has been intense. Several cities there are now occupied by Russians, who do not allow supplies or refugees in or out of the cities. Mariupol has been hit badly throughout the war.
“Almost the entire city [of Mariupol] has been burned, destroyed, and shelled,” one source stated. “There is no food left. There is no power, water, or heat, and the temperatures reach below the single digits at night.” According to this source, people survive by burning wood and boiling snow or rainwater to drink. There is no way into the city to alleviate this suffering since Russian forces shell the humanitarian corridors daily.
Russia has aggressively attacked Mariupol because it serves as a land bridge between territories already held by Russia in Crimea and the Russian-occupied eastern portion of the country. These territories were taken by Russia in 2014. Russian leaders also want Mariupol because it is an important port on the Sea of Azov.
Mulberry International has worked with a variety of ministries to refugees since the Russian occupation of Crimea and eastern Ukraine. They report that the children from the orphanage they work with have been evacuated after a four-day trek across the country; among those now safe are 33 children, 13 women, and 3 men.
On March 10, the world stood aghast as reports emerged of Russian troops bombing a maternity and children’s hospital in Mariupol. The images of children and pregnant women being carried from the rubble were heartbreaking. In addition, a Christian man named Nikolai, who was delivering food to people hiding in bomb shelters in the city, was killed when the vehicle he and three other men were traveling in was shelled. He leaves behind a wife and three children and a ministry to those in need. He had chosen to stay behind to help others, despite the danger. Pray for his family and the families of the other men as they mourn these losses.
ODESA ANTICIPATES ATTACK
Odesa, an important port on the Black Sea, has spent the last two weeks in uneasy quiet, but now satellite pictures show movement of Russian forces. Land troops are moving to surround the city and warships have positioned themselves in the Black Sea.
Missionary John Murphy lived in Odesa for almost 20 years with his Ukrainian wife and their children before escaping when the war began. He now runs a relief organization called Love for Ukraine Mission, which focuses on providing a wide variety of assistance to Ukrainians who have been displaced or severely impacted by the war. Murphy said, “I saw Odesa’s mayor address the media yesterday, and I’ve never seen him so nervous.”
RELIEF CONTINUES IN WESTERN UKRAINE
More than 2.1 million Ukrainians have left the country since the war began. They have made their way slowly across the country by car, bus, or train on trips that take two or three times longer than they used to. Traffic is extremely heavy. Sometimes people without transportation begin walking, carrying what is left of their lives on their backs.
“Lviv is overloaded with cars and people and volunteers,” said Sasha, who lives in western Ukraine. Sasha and her husband own a small apartment that they usually rent out, but they have opened it to refugees. A mother with her three children now live there. Her husband is in the military. She has no contact with him and worries about his welfare. The woman’s elderly mother was unwilling to leave the city and decided to stay behind.
Pray for protection for the Ukrainian people who have remained in their hometowns. Pray for those traveling in dangerous, cold conditions. Pray for those who wander, looking for a place to settle after leaving their entire lives behind. Pray for the courageous workers who have chosen to stay in order to serve those without a place to go.
If you want to donate to help those in Ukraine, consider giving to these organizations:
• Mulberry International provides relief to refugees through Ukrainian organizations on the ground.
• IDES (International Disaster Emergency Service) — be sure to designate your gift as “Ukraine relief.”
• Mountainview Christian Church is collecting money that is being sent to TCI staff on the ground doing relief work.
• Proem Ministries is welcoming, sheltering, and feeding refugees from Ukraine as they arrive in Poland.
Laura McKillip Wood, former missionary to Ukraine, lives in Papillion, Nebraska, and writes about missions for Christian Standard.
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