It’s been over a year of the war in Ukraine when we boarded our flight to Spain to support Ukrainian refugees in Europe as part of the JFNA’s Global Volunteer Hub Initiative. It was a third such trip for Rabbi and a first for Olga.
A year is a long time. In April 2022 (Rabbi’s first trip to Poland) people were utterly disoriented by the physical and emotional ordeal they have just survived. The war was real and devastating, the people were hurting and shaken, there was shock, disbelief, and a hope that the war will be over and they were going home soon. In August 2022 the immediate pain and shock felt more distant, and people were facing the reality that their lives were not going to be the same again, and they had to make some choices and long-term decisions. They needed help, reassurance, and support as they were trying to figure out their next steps. They needed someone to take care of their kids while they were navigating bureaucracies and looking for work. They needed to hear from those who went through the immigrant experience themselves that they will be OK someday. In April 2023 the reality is different once again. People are learning Spanish and are starting to have basic daily interactions in supermarkets and corner stores with more confidence. Kids are navigating school, people have moved on from temporary housing (Red Cross hotels and shelters) into rented accommodations. Many are securing jobs and continue to find ways to keep in touch with friends they made during the worst of it, supporting each other still. As the basic needs of their lives are beginning to slowly fall into place, their need for community, support and camaraderie becomes more focused – the early childhood center, the women’s Club, the Spanish lessons, the hiking group, the teen art project continue to be life savers. There’s a sense of ‘new normal’, where the same person simultaneously invited us to visit her again in her new home in Spain AND in her beloved Odessa, Ukraine (someday soon, we all hope)!
We brought with us iPads for the preschool program, matzo ball mix and chocolate covered matzah (a huge hit!), Passover snacks and a PJ library book in Ukrainian, your generosity and our desire to help. It was all put to such great use every step of the way. We shopped and cooked and hosted a Passover Seder, we taught and shared, we played with kids and read stories with adults, we took people on walks and trips and picnics. We sang and prayed and laughed and cried together. There was a lot of hugging. We talked about the pain that people carry, we talked about freedom and hopes for the future. We listened – A LOT. The importance of speaking the same language is the key and cannot be overstated! We gave a lot. It was not enough – it can never be enough.
As we return home we try to process our experiences and take account of what we are coming back with. We bring with us the stories and names and faces. We bring a sense of devastation and of hope. We bring lessons of resilience and optimism. Most of all we are returning filled with gratitude to TE for recognizing this urge we have to try and play a small role in making this world a little friendlier for people whose lives have been turned upside down. We couldn’t have done any of this without your love and support – THANK YOU!