by: Hayley Smith, LHI Founder/Director
Father George, Hayley, and Father Vasily in front of one of the beautiful murals at St. George’s Orthodox Church.
The best thing about being on the ground is meeting ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. This trip to Ukraine was no exception. On day three of the trip, we found ourselves in the sanctuary of St. George’s Orthodox Church, which has stood in the center of the village of Storozhynets in Western Ukraine for 170 years. It even survived the Soviet era when St. George’s was decommissioned and used for industrial storage.
The curved golden steeple was shining in the sun when Father George and his own father, Father Vasily, walked out to greet us. (Side note: Although Lifting Hands has been working with Father George and providing funds for his network of Orthodox priests to get aid to the areas of Ukraine hardest hit by the war, I’d never actually met Father George in person.. For months I’d pictured an older man wearing a long robe. I was surprised to find that he’s this young guy who wears jeans).
Before visiting one of their local refugee projects, they gave us a tour of the church. At one point, in the sanctuary, father and son spontaneously broke into song. We’re talking perfect pitch and perfect harmonies. It was so beautiful, even though I didn’t know what they were saying.
Father Vasily and Father George sing in the sanctuary.
The word “sanctuary’ literally means “a place of safety”, a fact that seems not to have been lost on Father George and Father Vasily. Russia started its invasion of Ukraine at 5 am on February 24, 2022. By noon that same day and with the help of their congregation, they had transformed their newly-constructed seminary building into a shelter, complete with mattresses and food. They put it out there on social media that they were ready to take in those who needed shelter. About 60 displaced Ukrainians poured in throughout the day.
Today, the seminary - here, the word means a school that provides religious education to youth - still hosts 30 people, mostly from devastated regions of Eastern Ukraine. The classrooms are now bedrooms, and the open spaces are now school classrooms for the children! Each room has bookshelves full of religious texts that now share their space with the occasional stick of deodorant, shampoo bottle or a charging phone.
A seminary classroom that has been converted into a bedroom.
As Ukrainian culture [delightfully] dictates, we sat down with Father George and his father for a snack of cake and a glass of homemade berezovyi sik, or birchwood juice. The conversation went in all kinds of interesting directions, inevitably landing on the war. “Were you ever tempted to flee?” I asked. “Absolutely not,” Father George answers. “Many of my priest friends in the east have been killed, so I know safety is not guaranteed. But you saw the murals in the Church, right? Who do you see? You see Jesus, not Putin, not Zelensky, not any politician. My job is to stay here and to care for God’s children.” He added that the seminary will be a shelter for as long as it is needed.
We asked Father George what he needs help with. He replied that he and the local community has the shelter’s needs covered, including 3 meals a day, all cooked in the basement. (The basement hasn’t changed in 170 years, which makes me feel like I’ve been transported back to the earliest days of the church). But, he says, “I do have a favor. Winter is coming. We are expecting a gas shortage. There is an orphanage in Kharkov that is home to 300 children. They could use help getting jackets.” We ask him to put us in touch. And this is how humanitarian work is done.
Learn more about our work in Ukraine here.