By Laura McKillip Wood
Sonya, a teacher, heard explosions on the first morning of the war in February. She grabbed her children and ran to her home’s basement. Almost immediately, they heard Russian planes and helicopters flying over their house in Hostomel, Ukraine, a suburb of Kyiv.
Sonya, her two children, and her 9-year-old nephew hid, terrified at the sounds of the air raid above them. They had no idea whether they would make it out alive. Sonya’s nephew was especially quiet during the air raids.
“Every time we ran to the basement, he took his Bible with him and sat on a sack of potatoes, just quietly holding the Bible in front of his face,” she says.
Russian troops ransacked the school where Sonya taught. The school had been well-equipped with computers and technology. The Russians stole shoes and workout clothes she had in her classroom and plundered every cabinet and backpack.
“They totally destroyed and broke everything,” Sonya says. “The principal’s son was killed by the entrance to the school.”
She has pictures of the school and a nearby house where the Russians destroyed everything just because they found a Ukrainian military uniform inside. “They left and locked the dog inside,” she adds. Her own house was destroyed, too.
When they were able, Sonya and her children escaped Hostomel and made their way to western Ukraine. Sonya wanted to stay in Hostomel—and her parents did remain in their hometown—but she decided to leave for the sake of her children and her nephew, who still sleeps fully clothed and fears going outside in the open. She worries about long-term effects on the children.
Upon arriving in western Ukraine, she and the children stayed with her former mother-in-law, with whom she has remained on good terms; the woman immediately welcomed everyone. Sonya’s ex-husband went to the war zone when the fighting began. Now Sonya and the children are staying in an apartment of someone who is temporarily in Poland. When that person returns, Sonya might take her children to Poland, but she isn’t sure.
Hostomel was one of the towns hit hard by Russian attacks; it was occupied by Russian soldiers for weeks until their retreat at the beginning of April. The town of about 18,000 was home to the Antonov Aircraft Plant and the Antonov Airport, which was shelled early in the war. The world’s largest aircraft, which had been at the airport for maintenance, was destroyed there.
Marina worked at the airport in Hostomel before the war. She and her two children, ages 16 and 9, also hid in their basement during the bombings. Marina and her children left for the safety of western Ukraine when they were able, but like Sonya, she wishes she could have stayed in Hostomel, as her elderly parents did. If she returned to her hometown now, though, she would not have a home. It was destroyed.
Both Sonya and Marina have joined the humanitarian effort in the Lviv region. They deeply desire to help others who are fleeing to safety. They felt useless doing nothing . . . not helping. Besides, they are used to working. Even though they wish they could be home, rebuilding and repairing, they find meaning in helping others like them. They are willing to do whatever they can for the war effort.
Neither woman is Christian, but through the effort of Christian people and others in Ukraine, they made their way to safety with their children. In their new hometown, they work side by side with believers.
Pray that the love of God and the peace he brings heals the wounds of these women and their children, and that they grow to know and love him.
If you would like to learn more about organizations providing humanitarian relief and shelter to refugees inside and outside of Ukraine, visit one of the following sites:
• 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 to send to Tavriski Christian Institute staff on the ground doing relief work.
• Proem Ministries is welcoming, sheltering, and feeding refugees from Ukraine as they arrive in Poland.
• Love for Ukrainians provides humanitarian aid and relief for those displaced and impacted by the war in Ukraine.
Laura McKillip Wood, former missionary to Ukraine, lives in Papillion, Nebraska, and writes about missions for Christian Standard.
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