Hi friends, The Rasa Center has welcomed more families in the last couple of days, and the place is bustling with people! They now have 35 Ukrainian women & children and 4 Romanian women & children for a total of 39 in the Center. Only a few more can squeeze in there! When Mom and Dad lived back here in Canada years ago they often talked and dreamed of having a Bed & Breakfast... well, their dreams have definitely come true! 😁
The donations you have sent over the past few weeks have been an incredible blessing, and are enabling them to not only feed and care for the refugees in the Center, but also to send help to people still back in Ukraine. Last week they sent a truckload of supplies over the border, and this week Dad and Terence again filled up two large van loads of food and medical supplies. They set off at 4:00 am for the three hour drive to the Ukraine border crossing, and then made their way to the village of Reni.
There are still many people crossing over the border into Romania, needing shelter and help.
One of the Ukrainian border guards who came over to inspect Terence's vehicle saw all the food and his eyes got wide. Terence quickly reacted to the situation and asked the guard if he would like some sugar for his family, and with a nod, he was off with 2 kg of sugar. Everyone is hurting, and hunger is a reality for the people still back in Ukraine. The grocery stores have nothing on their shelves; there is no food to buy. People are desperate and have tried going to other cities to find food, but there is little to nothing left (below is a photo of the store shelves in the city of Izmail, a city about an hour away from Reni).
Reinhard and Terence went to the same church that they went to last week, as this is a place that is desperate for help. People who are fleeing Odessa and other cities have stopped in Reni because it is safe for now, and they don't want to leave the country. In normal times, this church runs a restaurant and a kindergarten, and now in war time they are running a soup kitchen, trying to do what they can to help.
On Thursday, Michele (the widowed pastor's wife of the church) posted on Facebook: "We are so thankful and blown away! The Lord provides in a time of war. Yesterday we received a second load of food from Romania. Thank you so much for the brave men who came over the border into Ukraine. Thanks Nelia, Terence, Reinhard and Darcey. We love you and appreciate what you are doing for the people of Ukraine. ❤ Today we prepared some bags that we will give out tomorrow."
The medical supplies they brought over were given to the hospital in Reni. The staff there were so grateful and cried when they received them. They have run out of everything there, and are in such need.
One prayer request that they have for the Rasa Center is that they really need a translator who speaks Ukrainian and English. They can only do so much with Google Translate 😊. Mom and Dad would love to understand more from the mothers and grandmothers about their lives back home, what news they are receiving from their husbands, and to be able to tell them about the hope they can experience through Jesus. You are a blessing. Thank you for all your prayers, and for sending help. God bless you and your families, Jenni (Reinhard & Darcey Neufeld) www.gatewaytohope.ca