What is my purpose? Why am I in Ukraine? What’s the point? I felt called to go as soon as the trip was announced 9 months ago, but doubted I would be able to. I only officially signed up 2 months before the trip. Fundraising was difficult. The trip was difficult. But the experience was amazing.
We couldn’t fly directly to Ukraine because the airports are closed due to missile strike risks. The options were to fly to Cluj Romania, Krakow Poland, or Warsaw Poland. With either we were looking at a 12hr plus train or bus ride. We chose Krakow, which was exciting for me. My great grandfather immigrated to Pennsylvania from Poland with my grandfather when he was very young. I don’t think any of his relatives have been back. The small farms and countryside reminded me of the rural area I grew up in Minnesota. Krakow was beautiful, one of the few big cities spared in Poland during the wars.
The flights to Poland were long. We had about 4 hrs before we had to get on the bus to Ukraine. In total there were 8 of us from our church who signed up to rebuild a house within a week and we raised enough money to pay for all the building materials, transportation, and housing. We booked a sleeping train car from Przemysl. We boarded about 8PM Saturday… about 30 hrs after leaving the US. We were exhausted and still had to make it over the border. Luckily one member of our team speaks Russian and was able to get us cleared through customs… about a 2hr process at the border.
We arrived in Kiev about 7AM Sunday and were greeted by a Ukrainian family a member of our team find through his contacts. Andriy arranged a driver to pick us up, then took us around Kiev with his wife Katya and kids Luca and Matieu. He showed us where the civil uprising took place in the central square, then took us to his church in Irpin. After church we ate lunch together before going to the seminary where we would be staying for the build. We meet up with more than 50 other people from around the world. The project is called Homes for Hope and the organization is YWAM (youth with a mission). It was great to meet so many YWAM staff that do this type of work on a full time basis all over Ukraine and Romania. Most staff were from Kiev and Cluj, but a few also flew in from other countries (Mexico, Brazil, Canada, USA). There were about 20 other volunteers from a variety of organizations. Sunday night we split up into 6 different teams, each one tasked with completing a house within 5 days.
My group of 8 joined the team leader Mihai with his wife Lidia. We also were assigned a translator, Aliana, who was born in Ukraine but currently lives in the US. She intentionally flew to Ukraine to help her home country, then got recruited to support our project while there. There was also a photography and evangelical team that traveled to all the sites, visited with families, and arranged activities with the locals in Moschun.
We asked the story of the village. Our team leader took us to the memorial. More than 300 soldiers were killed in the trenches they dug in the pine trees on the outskirts of town to protect the village. Many families were hiding in their underground cellars when Ukrainian soldiers told them they needed to leave or die. At our house there were 12 people in their cellar as the village was being hit with missiles. They fled South and ended up being away from home for 2 months before they were allowed to return. Their house next to the cellar was flattened. Of the people that stayed in the village only 3 women survived. The Russians shot up the houses with 0.30 caliber rounds from the street, then went house to house looking for survivors and killing them. We asked how the Russians could kill civilians like that. We heard multiple reasons. The Ukrainians are like Nazis and want to destroy the former Soviet Union. The Ukrainians are not only not Soviet, they are also not human. Lastly, the Ukrainians are spoiled and living in luxury compared to the poor rural Russian farmers enlisted to fight on the ground.
Anna’s house was destroyed so we were tasked to build her a new one. She has two young kids, one of which was born prematurely during the war and has developmental issues. She has been staying with her mom Luba nearby. This family came back as soon as they could 2 months after evacuating. Luba’s house was also partially burned, but luckily the main portion of her home survived. When they returned there were still Russian soldiers hiding in the villages and woods hoping for reinforcements to arrive. The Ukrainian army had to sweep the woods to clear out landmines left behind by the Russians and detain the remaining Russian soldiers.
Andriy and Katya live just outside of Kiev. They tried to evacuate the country, but the border was closed just as they approached. They had to turn around and return to a family members house in Lviv. Katia was able to evacuate to Romania with her sons, but Andre wasn’t allowed to leave the country since all males are required to stay and support the war. He returned home to a city overrun with war. No water, no electricity, vehicles destroyed in the streets, houses destroyed. He said it was a miracle his home was not damaged or occupied by the Russians. Most homes were ransacked. He was warned to check for trip wires linked to hand grenades. His building structure found 2 booby trapped homes.
Even now, more than two years later both cities are being rebuilt, but neither is secure. Russia still is attempting drone attacks and has been successful on occasion. They are rebuilding and fighting. In Moschun the mayor said 90% of the rebuilding has been done by volunteers like us. The men are trying to resume their normal jobs, but are still at risk of being drafted. They still aren’t allowed to leave the country. The air raid sirens still sound frequently, but most people don’t go down to their shelters anymore. While we were there Russia sent 40 unmanned, armed drones to Kiev. Luckily they were all intercepted and didn’t cause any damage to the city. This is life in Ukraine.
What was my job? The project is called Homes for Hope. My job is to bring hope and love to the Ukrainians I met. To show them I care by being there. To help finish this house for Anna so she and her kids have a place to live. To help give them hope, normalcy, in spite of the war. In this I was blessed to help. Also we were all blessed by the families. Andriy took care of all our transportation and got us good Ukrainian and Georgian foods. Loba brought us coffee and snacks every day. She even ended up making us homemade lunch from her garden four days in a row. We got to spend time with the family and build relationships. We got to build their house with them and give them hope for the future.
There are a lot of people that could volunteer in Ukraine. Many are closer than flying from the US. However the need is still greater than the current volunteers. YWAM will be back to help more families. My team could only help one family, but for that family it makes all the difference.
Day 0
The house started as a concrete slab. The old house was completely destroyed.
Day 1
Framing and installing all the walls. Insulation was installed in the walls. Started roof rafters. Started outside foam insulation.
Day 2
Mostly installed ceilings and roof. Finished outside foam insulation. Installed windows. Started plastering. Loba made us Borsch and Vareniki along with vegetables from the garden.
Day 3
Today was tough. I spent the whole day plastering, most of it on the ladder going up and down. It required two coats of plaster. The first has the mesh in it. The second has to be textured after it dries slightly. The whole process requires lots of smoothing and it was quite hot outside. The interior team started painting, installed doors and trim.
Day 4
Today was much easier. We finished the last of the plastering, painted, and installed most of the trim and electrical. This meant on the last day we could just finish up the last pieces before the final lunch and dedication.
Bathroom and flooring is left up to the homeowner to finish. Electricity was hooked up the day we gave them the keys.
2 responses to “Homes for Hope in Ukraine”
They were blessed to have you ❤️
Awesome Josh!