Three Years of War in Ukraine: An update on the work of our team on the ground
Koen has been working as an aliyah worker for Christians for Israel (C4I) in Ukraine since 2004. Together with a dedicated team and many volunteers, and in cooperation with the Jewish Agency, he assists Jews in a practical way with transportation and travel documents on their way to Israel. In addition, the team of C4I in Ukraine distributes thousands of food parcels to those in need every year.
How are you and your team doing now that the war has been ongoing for three years?
Since the war began on February 24, 2022, our work has changed significantly. Remarkably, we saw the war coming months in advance and made extensive preparations. We stocked up on diesel and generators and secured a location to shelter refugees.
At the time our motto was: ‘We pray and hope for the best, but we prepare for the worst.’ When the war broke out, those preparations proved invaluable. However, the conflict also brought devastating bombings, rocket attacks, and drone strikes that severely damaged infrastructure.
Since much of our work involves transporting people and goods such as food parcels, these conditions have made our work much more challenging. Despite the obstacles, we are grateful to continue helping those in need.
Just recently, for example, we assisted a group of olim with transport to the airport and one of our truck delivered 600 food parcels. We are also grateful that our staff and volunteers remain unharmed even though cars, buses, and trucks are regularly attacked and destroyed by rockets. Our drivers are fully aware of the risks, yet we try to do this work prayerfully and trust that God will protect and help us.
‘We pray and hope for the best, but we prepare for the worst.’
During the first year of the war, we helped thousands of Jewish refugees with shelter in Ukraine and then brought them to Moldova and Poland for their departure to Israel:
How has the war impacted your family?
Thankfully, we have been able to adjust to this new reality. In the early days of the war, we made the difficult decision to send our three children to Belgium for their safety. It was a painful but necessary choice at the time.
Because I already spoke Flemish with the children, they adapted quickly to Flemish education. By the summer of 2022, we decided to bring the two youngest children back to Ukraine. Our eldest daughter, however, wanted to continue her studies in Belgium and now lives with my eldest sister. At the start of the war, she made this special drawing of the Christians for Israel bus driving through the (Red) Sea to Israel:
What are your main activities at the moment?
Our primary mission remains aliyah—helping Jewish people return to Israel. The amount of time we spend on this varies, depending on when individuals receive their travel documents and the Israeli embassy approves. As soon as that happens, we receive a call and immediately begin arranging transport to the airport inKishenov, Moldova.
In addition, we distribute approximately 3,900 food parcels per month, each weighing 10 kg. Thankfully, we have plenty of volunteers to assist with packing. Most of them are not eligible for military service, so they are available to help. Besides packing the food parcels, we also distribute them. We have some drivers who are allowed to cross the border and they transport the olim (those who make aliyah) to the airport, the other drivers help distribute food parcels and visit the people. We also have a sponsorship program for Jewish elderly and Holocaust survivors.
One advantage of working in Ukraine, is that people are used to last-minute planning. You can arrange and plan all kinds of things at the last minute. For example, it’s fine if you give just one day’s notice that you are coming with a load of food parcels and that you want to meet some people.
“We pack about 3900 parcels per month.”
Always ready. Christians for Israel’s vehicles in Ukraine are ready to bring food parcels and help Jewish families on their way to Israel:
What do you expect in the coming months?
It is difficult to predict. However, at this point, I believe a peace agreement will be imposed on Ukraine and as hard as that may be, I think a bad agreement is still better than no agreement at all.
If peace is established, many Jewish families who were unable to leave before—especially those with men serving in the military—will likely begin making aliyah. Many of them already have children or elderly relatives who have moved to Israel, and they may now follow.
Perhaps by the end of the year, we will return to a “normal” situation, where flights from Ukraine will be possible again.
For now, we remain committed to our mission—helping Jewish people on their journey home to Israel and providing comfort to those in need.
Please support the work of our dedicated Christians for Israel team in Ukraine!
