Flood Relief

Chernovtsy, an international city of 250,000 people nestled in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains and less than an hour drive to Ukraine’s Romanian and Moldovan Borders. Walking down the stone streets of the city or the dirt roads of the surrounding villages any of a multitude of languages can be heard; Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, and occasionally English. The Chernovtsy University draws students from all over Ukraine and the surrounding countries. The Austrian, Romanian, Polish, and Russian influences can be observed in the city’s brilliant architecture. In September Chernovtsy will celebrate its 600 year jubilee. It is promised to be a birthday party that will never be forgotten. Plans are being made for a variety of entertainment from singing and dancing, to fireworks, and displays of national and local heritage. As the celebration draws closer and preparations are being finalized, Chernovtsy’s citizens should find themselves in escalating excitement. It is a time they will be able to commemorate their rich past and hope for the future.

However the last three weeks have not brought abounding joy and merriment but devastation. July 26th, 27th, and 28th storms poured water, almost constantly, on western Ukraine bringing with it the worst flooding in over 100 years. Water cut through the soil on the mountains creating rivers and landslides. Due to the lumber industry there were fewer trees to drink the water falling on the mountains. The boundaries between land and water no longer existed. River banks could no longer contain the flow of water. It flowed over banks, over bridges, and over roads. In the city of Chernovtsy, citizens were trapped in their homes. Gas, water, and electricity were shut off for a period of 3 days. The Pruit River that runs along the city’s border over flowed, placing the city’s largest market place under its rushing waves. Booths and merchandise were drowned. Roof tops could be seen peeking out a few feet above the mighty flood. Millions of dollars of merchandise was ruined, leaving owners in mounds of debt and unsellable goods. Chernovtsy’s way of life was disturbed. But Chernovtsy received a minimal amount of the devastation brought by the flooding.

As the city of Chernovtsy begins to clean up and recover their way of life there are thousands of people in over 200 villages whose primary concern is not recovery but survival. The rains brought loss, destruction, and death. Flood waters claimed gardens, home, and lives. For most people it was not a matter of days or hours but minutes that they found their lives turned upside down and their plans for the future shattered.

August 18th, 19th, and 20th Aquila Foundation, a local Ukrainian Baptist Church, and The Kiev 1st Church of the Nazarene partnered to distribute bread, food packages, clothes, and crisis care kits to flood victims in villages surrounding Chernovtsy. The sights they saw and the stories they heard were tragic.

Women were pulling apart dilapidated houses to salvage any wood that could be used to rebuild their lives. Men were sorting through piles of rubbish. Covered in sweat and dirt, they worked to save and clean anything that was not destroyed. Mattresses hung over fences to dry out. In remote areas water reached heights of 8, 9, and even10 feet. Few animals survived the high tides. Horses and dogs swam to safety but most people lost chickens and cattle, primary sources of food for their families. Gardens that were once full of vegetation were washed away, leaving victims with very little food to survive the winter. Roofs sat on piles of collapsed beams and floor boards. Under the rubble, one could see toys, clothes, and furniture trapped- remnants of life, of family, of better times. For most they did not lose their possessions or even their homes but their way of life.

As people recover from the shock, that comes with suddenly losing everything people are beginning to pick up the pieces of their shattered and broken lives and try to piece them back together. It is an overwhelming task. Where do you begin? Where do you find strength? Where do you find hope? Where do you find help? Your neighbors and friends are all suffering similar losses. Together you struggle to survive. Some victims will be able to stay with friends and family outside of the flood zone for a short time, but then what. Eventually they will have to return to the haunting place where they once lived. Rebuilding is a difficult task but not the most urgent. August comes to an end in a few short weeks. September will come, ushering in fall. It will not be long after that winter will arrive. Even if victims are able to rebuild their homes enough to shelter their family for the winter, they may not be able to feed them. For many, the charity of strangers is their only hope. The Orthodox Church has brought some aide, but only to their own. So, who will help the rest, the believers and unbelievers, the poor, the down trodden, the broken hearted? Who? Will it be you? Will it be me? Will it be the body of Christ? -Not the Baptist, not the Nazarenes, or the Orthodox but the body?

1 Corinthians 12:12-13 paints us a picture of the body of Christ, “The human body has many parts but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. Some of us are Jew, some are Gentiles, some are slaves and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.”

As Christians we are part of this body. God has given each of us different gifts and recourses. When we come together to function as one body, each giving what we are able we can make a difference in the world around us.

2 Corinthians 1:4 tells us, “He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”

1 John 4:12 says, “No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us and his love is brought to full expression in us.”

The flood is a time of sorrow and devastation for many but it is also an opportunity for the body of Christ to stand and function as one- as hands and feet distributing aid and comfort, as the mouth and heart of those who pray for the families affected, as those who are willing to give time to put together Crisis Care Kits and collect clothes to replenish supplies, and as those who are willing and able to give financially to help pay for bread, clean drinking water, and gas to distribute it to areas in need. How is God calling you to contribute to the flood victims of Western Ukraine?

If you are interested in contributing financially, donating clothing, putting together Crisis Care Kits, or volunteering your time to come and distribute aide please follow the instructions below accordingly. Thank you for your time. God Bless.

To Contribute Financially:
You can make a tax deductible donation by making checks payable to “General Treasury Services, Church of the Nazarene” In the memo line include “Ukraine- Chernovtsy-Flood Relief-Vira” Checks can be sent to:
General Treasury Services
Church of the Nazarene
6401 The Paseo
Kansas City MO, 64131

If you are interested in putting together Crisis Care Kits please follow the instructions located at this website http://www.ncm.org/pdf/cck_instructions.pdf You will also need to include an inventory list inside each Banana Box of kits this sheet can be found at http://www.ncm.org/pdf/cck_inventory_sheet.pdf


If you are interested in coming to help to distribute aide or help renovate collapsed houses in October or November before the cold winter please contact Vira Kushnir
+380372575652-(H)
+380677089221-(cell)
+380503519093-(cell)
bee1302@gmail.com