Children in Ukraine are the hidden victims of this terrible war. They have endured more than eighteen months of escalating violence, trauma, destruction and displacement. They continue to be killed, wounded and deeply traumatized by the war. With schools closed in eastern and southern Ukraine, because of the danger, they are unable to access in person-learning and are unable to socialise with their classmates.
Our partner, Mira, ministering to traumatised children who had to flee from the fighting in the East to Uzhhorod, a relatively safe city near the borders in Western Ukraine, has been telling her story to DHM. She writes about the trauma of fleeing the fighting and reaching a place of safety:
‘We will have to learn to love, survive, and have patience for a long time yet, because none of these experiences pass without a trace. When peace comes, many families will have been destroyed; their world has been killed…their relatives were cut to pieces, or raped, or kidnapped. Only the love of God, His grace and His peace can save these hearts. I believe this. This is why I am ministering. I will fight for this.’
Please pray for peace so that children can regain their childhood, families can be reunited, and all can begin to heal and recover and build better lives.
The photographs below show some of the amazing work our partners are doing to support children and provide some semblance of ‘normalcy’ into their lives – table tennis and fun at a Friday evening ministry to young people in Vinnytsia; delivering food to hungry children in Donetsk region; communion around the campfire during one of the summer camps mentioned in the previous blog post and the ‘Equilibrium’ project for traumatised children led by Mira.
We want to keep supporting our partners in this vital work. We rely on the generosity of our supporters in the UK and elsewhere throughout the world. If you can donate to our work (either a one-off or a regular payment), please follow the link above to our donations page.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support.
May God bless you.
Melanie Gray, on behalf of the DHM trustees