Here is the story from an interview with a Ukrainian refugee who is being helped by an SGA-supported church in Poland . . .
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Tatyana and her daughters Margarita and Radmila, and son Yury
For Tatyana’s family, the war started on February 24th, as it did for many Ukrainian families, when at 5 am the first rockets hit their home city and they heard the first terrible explosions. At that moment, all the citizens realized that their life would never be the same — quiet and regular, as a new “war” page was opened in the book of their lives.
The following days were relatively calm in their city. For some time, Tatyana and her family remained in their apartment. But they saw in the news the horror that was happening in other Ukrainian cities, being ruthlessly destroyed by artillery and air bombing. And they understood that the opposition would stop at nothing and continue killing the civilians in Ukraine. The danger was approaching their city, as well. “We were afraid for our children,” says Tatyana, “and therefore, my husband and I decided to save them and left.”
On March 1, Tatyana and her husband fled their city with their three children. They faced a very long and difficult journey through the whole territory of Ukraine down to a safe place in Poland. They would stop in each oblast of Ukraine for overnight.
Their first overnight stay was on March 11 at the building of a church. Tatyana said that she and her husband were very touched by how they were received by the church people, “We felt taken care of like a family – they provided delicious food and bed.
At the next rest stop on March 12 for Tatiana’s family, they were welcomed at a large Baptist church for a night stay. Tatyana witnessed that the Lord also helped all the refugees who found shelter that night. The church organized all the processes very well and helped people solve their problems.
On March 13, Tatyana’s family stopped at a church of Evangelical Christian
Baptists. Here the children of God of this church showed them their Christian love in practice: they fed them, provided lodging and comforted spiritually.
On March 14, Tatiana with her husband and children reached the border. They crossed the border with Poland by car at a checkpoint. And here, as well, the Lord attended to their needs and acted miraculously in the life of Tatyana and her loved ones. She said that they managed to cross the border in only 1 hour, as at that particular moment there were only 5 cars in line. It was indeed a great blessing from God. They did not have to stand in line at the border for hours or even days, which was the case for many other Ukrainian refugees. Tatyana’s husband was freely allowed out of Ukraine, as he is the father of three minor children and must care of them and his wife.
From March 14 to March 15, the family has already spent the night on the Polish territory at a school gym. Here they experienced Polish people’s care about Ukrainians. The volunteers arranged everything so that the refugees exhausted by the war and long journey were able to have a good rest, could eat and carry on their way through Poland or to other countries. From this city they went to the suburbs of another city to visit Tatiana’s Christian friend. They spent a night there and on March 15 continued their way further.
On March 16, Tatiana, her husband and their children finally arrived in another beautiful and hospitable Polish city to the church of the Christian Baptists. A friend of Tatyana from the Ukrainian region where she lived, who had been living this Polish city for six months, invited them to come. Immediately on the first day of the attack on independent Ukraine, on February 24, Tatyana contacted that friend of hers by phone. Sure enough, she told them to come to Poland. While there, Tatyana and her husband learned the bad news that on the night of March 24-25, the Russian invaders exploded military depots in their city in Ukraine. The couple realized that they had done the right thing by leaving the dangerous place with the children. They perceived their escape of the war as a manifestation of God’s guidance in the life of their family.
Even during this interview, Tatyana says that here in Poland God does not leave them in bad want. Now, while they are looking for individual housing and work, they can still stay at the Baptist church. Christians of this church and other Baptist churches from neighboring cities take good care of them and their children. Their family has everything they need.
In conclusion, Tatyana, with tears in her eyes, said, “God blessed us to timely leave for a safe place, and everywhere along the long trip of our rescue, we would meet the children of God, who sacrificially helped us and surrounded us with great Christian love.”
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In a time of great fear and uncertainty, God is bringing help, healing, and hope to the people of Ukraine through SGA-supported pastors, churches, a seminary, and SGA-sponsored Compassion Ministry. Be a part of God’s incredible work with your generosity and prayer support.
Your gift of compassion helps struggling people with emergency aid that generally includes food, medicine, warm clothing, shoes, and Scripture materials.