Roman (a friend from our City Church International - CCI - leadership team) and I (Gary) were able to help deliver aid into, and refugees out of, Ukraine this week. There are so many “stories within the story” within this 72-hour period, so I will unpack those and give access (via links) to some of those in the coming days. For now, I will share this overview - a bit long as it is - praying that you will be blessed and see God’s (and your) hands in all of it.
First, please know how thankful we are for the support you are sending to make this possible. Your funding was used to purchase food, medicine, hygiene supplies, mattresses, and fuel. You are purchasing real help to assist in so many ways … both here in Bratislava and in Ukraine.
Being part of the network of ACS (Apostolic Church of Slovakia) churches, CCI is connected to people and congregations all across Slovakia. Jaro (pronounced “Yaro”) is one such person. An incredible husband, businessman, father, and servant leader, Jaro is making regular trips into Ukraine to deliver aid, and returning to Slovakia (sometimes through Slovakia, sometimes through Poland) with refugees seeking safety from the war. He is making some of these trips alone, so Roman and I were thankful to be able to go along and help load/unload the 4 tons of aid and to assist in every aspect of the trip. The bus that Jaro is using was loaned to him by a member of another church here in Bratislava. God’s network is incredible!
Much of the aid was brought to Slovakia by vans driven all the way from Italy - wow! The balance was collected here in Bratislava by the three City Church congregations (Bratislava, Pezinok, and International), and by a family in Trnava (another one of those amazing and heartbreaking stories). Roman and I delivered the City Church and Tranava portions (and 50 mattresses) using a City Church van packed from front to back and floor to ceiling.
We drove the van over to Presov the night before (Monday), arriving around 8:30 p.m. Into bed at 10:30 with a 2:30 wake-up call and a 3:00 departure. The trip from Presov to Lviv and back to Presov was a 28-hour trip, returning at 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday.
Our first stop was at 4:30 in Sobrance (where the bus was parked) to transfer the aid from the van to the bus. After a quick stop to buy/fill gasoline containers, and then navigate the Slovak/Ukraine border (customs and immigration on both sides) we arrived in Uzhhorod at 7:30 (8:30 am Ukraine time being 1 time zone later than Central Europe). This is where the 50 mattresses were delivered - to be distributed locally to families who are hosting refugees that are evacuating active war zones and moving further west. With help from 4 guys and one determined 10-year old, the 50 mattresses were out and safely stored in less than 10 minutes!
Uzhhorod to Lviv was the longest driving part of the trip. 4.5 hours through the scenic western Ukrainian Carpathian mountains, with arrival in Lviv at 13:00. Our first stop was a warehouse where some of the aid would be stored and readied for transfer to points east, and some would be immediately loaded into cars taking it directly to those (the Trnava connection) assisting refugees at the central Lviv train station.
The warehouse was staffed with 20+ guys - most having moved from active war zones themselves, and now assisting with any efforts to help this war-torn country. The 4 tons of aid were offloaded in less than 30 minutes - quick work with many hands! Others were transferring the gasoline we brought into other containers so that ours would be empty for the next trip across. And not wanting to waste any opportunity, Jaro had phoned ahead and these guys were ready to now siphon 200 liters of diesel out of the bus - also to provide fuel for others to transport the aid further east. Total time at Lviv stop #1 - 75 minutes.
With an empty bus, we headed to central Lviv to make stops at two different churches, picking up a total of 48 passengers. These two stops, including enjoying a bowl of soup and some bread served to us by one of the churches, took a total of 2 hours. An incredible network of connection and organization to get these people to the church and onto our bus. But incredibly heartbreaking stories as well. We cannot imagine the heart-wrenching thoughts leading one to make the decision leave family behind under these circumstances. More on this later.
Departure from Lviv was at 16:00 with arrival at the Ukraine-Poland border crossing at Krakovice at 17:30. And thus began the long wait. 10 hours of waiting and processing - out of Ukraine and into Poland. The bus drove through the last gate at the Polish border crossing and into Poland at 3:30 on Wednesday.
We arrived that the central train station in Rzeszow, Poland, in 1.5 hours at 4:00 a.m (back in Central Europe time zone now). There were plenty of people there to assist. Local police and volunteers making sure everyone knew where they were going and what resources were available to them. Some of the refugees already had people meeting them to transport them to either short-term or long-term housing locally. Some were entering the station to wait for the next train that would take them further west in Poland or to other European countries. One mom and child stayed with us for the journey back to Presov - Jaro would see that she found a place to stay after we arrived.
We departed Rzeszow, Poland at 4:15 with a 2:45 minute drive ahead of us back to Prezov, Slovakia. And my main job … keep Jaro awake! Up for 24+ hours with only a handful of 20-minute naps, I wasn’t sure I was up to the task. But God … kept us awake, and Jaro alert and on the road … and got us safely back to Presov at 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday.
Roman I crashed at Jaro’s house for a 3-hour nap and were back in Bratislava before dinner on Wednesday. It was good to be home … but I know the Lord has opened this door so that I may help in this way again. May He make it so … for me and for many others.