Letter from Nancy on the Devastation of the War

Dear Friends,

As this war continues, many of us are asking the same question.  Why? Why destroy the innocent?  As you know, Ukraine has been like a second home to me. It has been gut-wrenching to watch the slaughter of so many! It’s just pure evil to target civilians, many just children or the elderly trying desperately to escape.

The first time I went to Ukraine was in the late ‘90’s. A group of us from Williamsburg Community Chapel spent a week in Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv. The Chapel had a sister church in Bucha, and we set up an eyeglass clinic there. In those days it was difficult for people to get glasses, so we brought hundreds of pairs and an American ophthalmologist provided eye exams. I was just a volunteer, but that trip opened my eyes to needs everywhere.

Now Bucha lies in ruins and bodies of the innocent are strewn throughout a once peaceful town. Oh how sad!

Ten years later, Kherson was where we opened our second girls’ home Esther’s House, and boys home Joshua’s House. We saw dozens of young people come through those homes and make a dramatic change in their lives. Many of them are still working with orphans in different parts of the world. Now their beloved Kherson is under Russian occupation. Their friends and relatives are spending sleepless nights in bomb shelters and struggling with food shortages during the days. One of the graduates of Esther’s House is on our staff and she and her family has been safely evacuated to Romania. She cries when she tries to talk about her brother and his family, in danger and unable to leave Kherson.

Last Friday, the Kramatorsk train station was bombed. Over 50 people were killed and over a hundred were injured. How often I’ve waited in that station for the train back to Kyiv. Who were they? Could they have been our kids or volunteers from Friends Club?

In 2013 we opened a storefront in downtown Kramatorsk and called it Friends Club. Five nights a week we opened the doors and welcomed orphaned teens from all over the city. We had cooking club, movie club, Bible study and general get-togethers. Dozens of kids and adult volunteers spent hours at our Friends Club. Now since the war began everyone has dispersed. How many of them were at the train station trying to evacuate earlier today? It’s heart breaking!

Each place we hear about on the news brings back a memory albeit of better times. And a prayer, …please Lord bring it to an end!  Bring peace! Comfort these people who have been through so much!

Please continue to pray for Ukraine. When the news media turns it’s fickled attention away towards something else, please remember these people and the hardships they have endured. Remember, it could be us next time.

Blessings,

Nancy Hathaway, Founder/Director