Two years can seem to pass by in the blink of an eye – think of a parent watching two years pass in their child’s life or two years at a job that brings joy and fulfillment. But in different circumstances, two years can move agonizingly slow. That has been the case in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. When Ukraine was invaded in February 2022, many people feared that its government would quickly fall and the country would be overrun. When the Ukrainian people courageously repelled the invasion and made progress against the larger invading army, the world noticed and pledged support in a variety of ways. While governments promised weapons and financial assistance for the government, nonprofits and NGOs set up aid missions to help provide basic necessities for civilians across Ukraine. As people became displaced from their homes in Eastern Ukraine, the Western part of the country and neighboring nations rushed to help.
But two years have passed and many of those groups – and the donors who fund them – have become fatigued. Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, unrest in Yemen, cyclones and flooding in Africa, and the conflict between Israel and Hamas – these have all taken attention away from the very real needs of the Ukrainian people.
One group that has been helping consistently meet the needs of the marginalized in Ukraine has been the Johanniterorden, the German member of the Alliance of the Orders of Saint John of Jerusalem. Since March of 2022, Johanniter has been running Mission Siret in the small town of Siret just across the border in Romania. They have faithfully brought supplies of food, hygiene products, blankets, candles, and water filters across to be distributed to the most vulnerable in Ukraine. Internally displaced people, children, hospital residents, and those in the red zone close to the fighting have all benefited from this work. In April, four members of the U.S. Priory, Dave Boven, Corinne Ritsick, and the Revs David Goldberg and Christine Faulstich, made their way to Siret to help with this important work.
Of course, the Ukrainian partners who received and helped distribute this humanitarian aid appreciated the material help, but what impacted them even more was the emotional support of knowing that, even after two long years, they had not been forgotten. Members of the Priory in the USA remember our Lords, the sick and poor, wherever they are.
