Some are just waiting to die, and do not want to die alone. They are rescued from isolation, poverty, and squalor; abandoned by families who either could not—or would not—care for them. For them, it is a daily struggle to stay independent in their war-ravaged villages, to stay warm through Ukraine’s bitter winters, to stay clean and fed and mobile and safe and alive.
But this is what life is, they shrug philosophically, when you are old.
“Life has always been difficult in Ukraine,” says Maxym Oliferovsky. “Now, with war, it is worse. The old suffer so much. Many give up hope.” Maxym and his wife Anya, together with pastor Oleksiy Makaiov, are determined that hope should be restored.
Years ago, in founding New Hope Center, Maxym first focused on orphans. “Some were orphans because of the death of their parents,” he says. “But many were orphans because their families simply could not take care of them or provide for them.” Maxym went on to explain that alcoholism—that constant companion to poverty and despair—was often at the root of broken families, and neglected children. It was also the reason for some abandoned elders; elders who are now even more isolated because of the war surrounding—and invading—their villages.
“The old,” Maxym says, “have also become orphans.”
One such woman was Valentina. At age 76, she had been left alone to fend for herself. When pastor Oleksiy Makaev responded to a call from Social Services, Valentina was almost paralyzed from having stayed in bed constantly, shivering alone in her shabby dwelling. She spoke very little. Through nurturing attention, healthy food and prayer, Valentina came out of her depression, and began to communicate. She felt safe, accepted, loved—part of a new family.
“She was with us only a few months,” says pastor Oleksiy, “before she passed away. We still remember the words she spoke to us, saying that this had been the best time of her life. Before she died, Valentina received the Lord into her heart. Now, she is in an even better home. Her heavenly home.”
Stories like that of Valentina motivate those at New Hope to continue caring for the elderly victims of this war, as well as entire displaced families, young and old. Pray for this vital ministry. Pray for peace in Ukraine.
