01/05/2022
My American friend, Wanda Glover, was also volunteering in Ukraine. Wanda’s daughter, Erika, is a former police officer and had mailed me her old police body armor. Wanda asked if I could get body armor to the group she had volunteered with, because they had already lost two drivers during humanitarian deliveries in the last few weeks. I told Wanda I would try and get some vests for her group, but it would be a more than 6 hour drive, one way - after I crossed the Ukrainian border. I wasn’t sure if I could travel safely for more than 12 hours on the roads inside Ukraine. But thanks to the help of Dima, and Masha, and Dennis, and Bogdon, and Ramona, and Tim, and Andrii, I was able to make that journey safely.
There are many things I witnessed on the roads which I was not allowed to photograph. I was warned that anyone caught photographing any military personnel or activity could have their phone confiscated, or worse. That is for the safety and anonymity of Ukrainian defense movements. During my many hours on the road, I passed through several different check points. Sometimes we were stopped and questioned. Sometimes they just waived us through. All along the roads I saw barriers that were staged on the side of the road, ready to be implemented at a moment’s notice. These included large steel barricades that are multi pointed and resemble a giant version of the old children’s game of jacks. Also piles of sandbags were at the ready in strategic locations all over the country and around the basement windows of churches or civic buildings turned bomb shelter.
I saw many impressive Ukrainian military vehicles including tanks and anti aircraft trucks. I also saw many Ukrainian soldiers who now wear a green arm band on the right biceps. I saw two fighter jets fly overhead. Of the two air raid warnings I was under, one occurred while we were driving. The other occurred while we were in an apartment. Dima told me the Ukrainian word for an air raid translates literally to a phrase like “Anxiety in the Sky”. Those air raids had made it difficult for any of my friends to get a full night sleep for several weeks. But now, they are almost used to them. We had to time our driving carefully because of the nationwide curfew at 11 pm.
One of the most striking things for me to see while driving through Ukraine was just how beautiful it is. The natural landscapes (which include green hills and some mountains in the distance, tall trees and forests) and also the gothic architecture of cities built more than 300 years ago. From watching the news, it’s easy to get the impression the entire country is a wasteland, but that is not true. There are terribly large portions of Ukraine that have been leveled and severely damaged, but there are also many cities in Ukraine which currently stand firm. Life in those cities still progresses with some normalcy. Ukraine is not lost! There are many places in Ukraine that can and must be preserved!
I was honored to meet the people I did who were just regular citizens before the war started, but now work daily to bring supplies and aid to people in need all across the country. That’s a common thing now. If your city is not under attack, you help the other cities however you can.
Dennis and Bogdon are young students at Great Commission Missionary School in Ukraine. Dennis told me he had the opportunity to leave Ukraine, but he chose to stay and volunteer. Every student in their school helps bag supplies and load vans for humanitarian deliveries to the hardest hit areas. They are the group my friend Wanda was volunteering with, and I was able to get Erika’s police vest, along with others, to that group. Their coordinator, Vitaliy told me they had 3 vans loaded and ready, along with 7 volunteers. They were preparing a trip to the Kharkiv region and would be using the vests I brought on that very next mission.
I can’t fully describe the honor I felt to offer some small support to people like this. I felt as if I became part of the family while I was with them, and in a way, their fight is now my fight. Ukraine belongs to the world, and we must Stand With Ukraine!
