We’ve arrived in Ukraine. Here’s what we’re seeing.

A World Help team arrived in Ukraine today, but before crossing into this war-torn nation, we first made a stop at our partner’s refugee center in Poland.  This center is already serving 800 people who have arrived with just the few belongings they could carry with them as they fled.

One of those people is Valentina.

Watch the video below to hear Valentina share her greatest needs:

Valentina is a mom of five children, three girls and two boys. Their family fled to Poland as the war in Ukraine escalated, but Valentina’s husband stayed behind.

He could have gotten out of the country before the age restriction barring men 18-60 from leaving was put into place, but he chose to stay.

Valentina said she was heartbroken to leave him, but she understands why he made the choice that he did. He’s a pastor in Ukraine and felt he needed to be there for his church members who didn’t want to leave. Now, he is helping with the evacuation efforts in Ukraine.

She has still been able to communicate with him some. He says the military attacks in the region are continuous. Their town hasn’t been struck yet, but all the surrounding towns have been heavily attacked by the Russian military.

While Valentina’s husband stayed behind, she and her children camped out on a train platform for over 24 hours, waiting for a train that wasn’t already packed to capacity with people fleeing.

Finally, a train arrived, and the entire family crammed into a four-person seat. When they arrived at the border with Poland, they had to wait another 22 hours before making the crossing.

They have nothing in Poland. No place to stay. No idea what the future holds. No money to provide for their family

Our team could immediately sense Valentina’s stress and trauma when they met her. She has been strong for days, but now she is exhausted and depleted. She is counting on the kindness and generosity of others for her family’s survival.

She needs help from someone like you.

Today is World Day of Prayer. As you are praying for the people of Ukraine, will you please add Valentina and her family to your prayers? And would you also please pray about how the Lord would have you get involved to help people like her?

Every $35 you give provides a week’s worth of essentials like food, shelter, clothing, and more for a refugee in Ukraine or another high-conflict area.

It’s critical that we respond right now. Russia is expected to continue cutting off supply lines, so we have a brief window of opportunity to get aid into the areas that are open now but won’t be in the coming weeks. People in these regions may not survive without it.

Your gift today will help meet the most urgent needs of a refugee, will show them the love of Christ, and will remind them that they are not alone during this crisis.

Click the button below to make your gift.

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