WARSAW, Poland – The war between Russia and Ukraine is in its eighth month. In the middle of the conflict and suffering, Operation Blessing continues to support and help Ukrainian refugees in Poland and internally displaced Ukrainians in their country.
Sergey Osipov can’t hold back the tears as he told CBN News about the challenges they faced as the constant shelling by the Russian army forced them to leave their hometown near Kharkiv.
“It’s really depressing being separated from loved ones and to leave my house and all our livelihood in Ukraine,” he explained. “That is where I spent all my life until now that I am old. I never imagined that this war with Russia can happen. There is a saying, ‘Bad peace is better than a good war.‘”
Osipov is temporarily housed at the PTAK Expo Center while waiting for his Canadian visa so he can go live with his daughter.
While CBN News was visiting the center, Ukrainian refugee Irina Sechina asked to be interviewed to warn of the danger at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station if Russia continues to stage missile attacks from there.
She said, “This poses a big threat not only to Ukraine but to the whole world if Russia’s rockets hit the nuclear facilities in the plant in Energodar. We just bought our dream house but had to abandon it because we live near the plant.”
We are asking the whole world to help us, not only through arms but by imposing some measures against Russia,” Sechina said. ” Otherwise, our city might totally be wiped out from the map.”Osipov and Sechina are among 3,000 refugees staying at the PTAK Center, one of the largest refugee shelters in Poland. The needs there are enormous.
Ewelina Cheapicka, board director of the PTAK Expo Shelter said, “Food is the most needed. I know we are at the warehouse and there’s a lot of stuff here. But this will only last for three weeks. We need food and hygienic supplies.”
Operation Blessing quickly responded to the request, sending truckloads of food, hygiene kits, and cleaning materials to the shelter. OB also helps other refugee centres in Poland such as the Agape Shelter in Krakow. Operation Blessing arrived just in time to replenish the empty shelves at the shelter with food, sacks of pasta, noodles, cleaning materials, and hygiene supplies. The supplies were distributed to 400 to 600 families who come to the shelter every day to pick up whatever they need.
