Ukraine: Now and in the Future

'We are not alone'

In response to damage from bombing, The Salvation Army has been working to support those most affected through the provision of essential supplies. Kharkiv has been a regular target, in part due to its proximity to the border, with many people unable to leave the city.

In the Saltivka area of Kharkiv the damage has been heavy, with broken windows, collapsed roofs and burnt and destroyed homes commonplace. Yuri’s home is badly afflicted. ‘My house was not damaged at all during the German occupation in the Second World War,’ he said. Now, it becomes more damaged as each day passes and he is unable to keep on top of the repairs.

Yuri is one of those helped with a recent distribution of essential supply kits by The Salvation Army. Each set contains a tent, two beds, two sleeping bags, tables, chairs, a stove with fuel and some utensils. Yuri was moved by this support and said: ‘Now, I have a place to rest while I renovate my house. I have a place to cook and even sleep! Your kindness gives me hope and faith in the future because we are not alone.’

Catching up after school

Across Ukraine, The Salvation Army has plans to run after-school programmes to support children whose education has been disrupted by schools being too unsafe to open and irregular timetables.

After-school programmes are also being run elsewhere in Europe, particularly in Georgia and Moldova. These programmes provide additional lessons in subjects like Ukrainian, maths, English and physics, and the extra hours of care mean that parents have the opportunity to work while knowing that their children are safe.

Shelter near the capital

Near the capital of Kyiv, a small, temporary housing complex has been set up and is supported by The Salvation Army. It provides accommodation to people who have been displaced due to their homes being destroyed.

Two rows of prefabricated dormitories were placed together in a car park, each including communal bathrooms and kitchens. The Salvation Army supplied equipment for furnishing these homes and continues to provide regular support through the distribution of food and hygiene items.

Power and Connection

After receiving donations of portable power stations from other countries, The Salvation Army has been able to offer places providing power and connection at its centres. Heating, water, electricity and mobile communication are available, with the intention that supply remains uninterrupted as far as possible.

Language is not always a consideration in deciding which country to flee to, so one significant initiative in Le Havre, France, is the French language lessons offered by Ukraine‑born Viktoriia Veremieienko.
 
 

A Salvation Army officer in Starachowice, Poland, where a food bank forms part of the organisation’s response to refugees from Ukraine. Parcels of food have been a key part of the support given in many countries, particularly in the initial stages of the response.

Hot meals are prepared every day in Batumi, Georgia. All staff currently employed for the project are from Ukraine; this provides a work opportunity for these people, and enables them to share their knowledge of culturally appropriate food.
 

Places of Welcome

As people have fled Ukraine and come to Moldova, The Salvation Army has opened its centres and headquarters building as places of welcome. Here meals, vouchers, bedding and other such items have been given to people who, in most cases, have arrived with very little.

In Ungheni, for instance, The Salvation Army provides breakfast for around 70 refugees three times a week. Temporary accommodation has also been offered in various locations across the country.

Meals and connection

The Salvation Army in Batumi, Georgia, is providing 130 hot meals a day to refugees from Ukraine. Operating from newly refurbished facilities at its centre in the city, the scheme offers nutritious food and a space for community to those displaced by the war.

The feeding programme runs five days a week at The Salvation Army’s church in Batumi, with approximately 4,000 meals served every month to registered beneficiaries. Presently, the corps employs four people to help run the programme – two cooks, a cleaner and a coordinator – with additional support from the corps officers.

Maria, who came to Batumi from Ukraine’s Kherson region with her daughter and granddaughter, described the impact of The Salvation Army’s work: ‘We are very grateful to this organisation that provides us with assistance: for delicious dinners, for support with products, and for very nice and kind people. We thank them for everything.’ This programme is not just about food and nutrition, it is also about offering a place to talk, to meet, to connect and to share.

Dignity through choice

Four Salvation Army centres in Poland are distributing supermarket vouchers to displaced people from Ukraine in need of support. Each week in the capital, 20 to 30 vouchers are given to families, worth around 50 euros each.

Vouchers present several advantages over distributing groceries. Not only does it reduce the administration and storage issues of physical goods, importantly it allows people to choose the products they need the most. Dignity is an important part of The Salvation Army’s humanitarian response.

A Salvation Army volunteer in Malbork, Poland, provides a supermarket voucher to a refugee from Ukraine.

In Malbork, people are visited by Salvation Army personnel rather than having to attend the organisation's centre, allowing deeper relationships to be formed.

A family from Ukraine being supported in Starachowice, Poland.

After seeking practical assistance from the organisation, they have also found community in The Salvation Army as a church.

'Smiles come back'

As a result of The Salvation Army’s efforts, around 500 refugees have been supported through accommodation and community in Le Havre, France.

The biggest challenge was finding a large amount of housing at short notice, said Florence Fanelli-Faure, the organisation’s director of social work in Le Havre: ‘When the Ukrainian community arrived, we had no room left at all. We had to go everywhere to find some places.’

The apartments are rented by The Salvation Army, then sub-let to the Ukrainian refugees. People are supported to find training – including French language lessons – and work, meaning that they are able to fund their own accommodation in the long term.

Iryna, a refugee from Ukraine, spoke positively about The Salvation Army: ‘They helped us with many things: with the place for living, with our questions. All that we have now is because The Salvation Army helped us.’

Florence is positive about the impact of The Salvation Army on those displaced by the Russia–Ukraine war, and hopeful about the future. ‘I cannot say Ukrainians are happy in France; they are very sad about the situation,’ she noted. ‘But I think as time goes [by], smiles come back.’