I recently volunteered to help the August Mission team deliver humanitarian aid materials to a Roman Catholic church in a smaller town called Starokostyantyniv, located about 50 kilometers north of Khmelnytskyi on the main highway towards Kyiv.

The trip today was actually my third visit to Starokostyantyniv since I arrived in Khmelnytskyi a month ago. August Mission generally makes a delivery trip to the Catholic church at least once every two weeks, and there is a children’s hospital there which August Mission also supplies.

The Church

After we unloaded the aid materials from the August Mission truck, one of the church volunteers took us on a walk-through tour.

In addition to the main chapel, there are also dormitory rooms, a dining hall and a kitchen. The church uses these facilities to host various youth camps, bible retreats and similar activities.

According to this account, construction of the church began In 1754, with funds donated by a wealthy patron.  It was originally a temple and monastery for Capuchin friars. In 1887, the Russian tsarist government forcibly closed the Capuchin monastery, and the church became a parish church.  After World War II, the Soviet government closed the church and used the building as a local “cultural center.”  The building was returned to the Church in 1989, and the local congregation has been working to gradually restore and upgrade the building ever since. Capuchin Franciscans once again serve the parish.

Caritas-Spes

The church is affiliated with Caritas-Spes, the charitable mission of the Roman Catholic Church in Ukraine.  Caritas-Spes is a member of the Caritas Internationalis network.  Caritas Internationalis is a confederation of over 160 members from almost every country in the world, all working at the grassroots level to respond to humanitarian needs. Any time a crisis strikes, almost anywhere in the world, Caritas is already there on the ground. Diverse members give Caritas its strength – from small groups of volunteers to some of the biggest global charities. Inspired by Catholic faith, Caritas is the helping hand of the Church – reaching out to the poor, vulnerable and excluded, regardless of race or religion, building a deep-rooted global vision of equity, compassion and community. “Caritas-Spes” means “Love & Hope” in Latin.

The church in Starokostyantyniv is a good example of the work Caritas-Spes is doing in Ukraine.  The church is blessed with a relatively large yard and storage shed. August Mission and other donors deliver aid goods, which church volunteers store in the shed.  They painstakingly sort everything and generally organize by adult clothing and footwear, children’s clothing and footwear, and foodstuffs.  They hang season-appropriate clothing on racks and store off-season clothing in labeled boxes. 

Then, every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday morning they set up a “bazaar” in the churchyard.  Internally displaced individuals and families (IDPs) are welcome to come to the bazaar and select items they need.  The church volunteers register each IDP and keep a record of items each IDP takes.  This morning, over 150 IDPs came to the bazaar. 

August Mission Closes the Loop

Even though August Mission is not a formal member of the Caritas confederation, August Mission and Caritas nevertheless cooperate closely on an informal, practical basis.  Caritas Poland operates a warehouse in Lublin, Poland, where humanitarian donations of aid goods contributed by individuals and organizations from all across Europe are consolidated and packed for transport into Ukraine.  August Mission operates a small fleet of trucks to transport aid goods from the Caritas warehouse in Poland into Ukraine. 

August Mission’s most important work in Ukraine is to identify and liaise with local organizations that can distribute humanitarian aid goods directly to internally displaced people and families in need within Ukraine.  The Caritas warehouse in Poland relies on August Mission to identify appropriate recipients of such aid and transport the goods directly to them. Over the past 9 months, August Mission has built up a robust local network in Khmelnytskyi Oblast, and is working to expand the network into other regions.

The church in Starokostyantyniv is a good example of the way August Mission “connects the dots.” The church is under the auspices of the Ukraine branch of Caritas Internationalis, so it does not have direct access to the Caritas Poland warehouse in Lublin. August Mission’s team on the ground in Poland and Ukraine is the only link between them.

Heartfelt thanks to all who are providing financial support to help August Mission cover its overhead costs and “keep the lights on” for internally displaced people and families here in Ukraine!  For those readers who are not already participating, please feel free to make a donation at AugustMission.org.