Featured Photo: The Galaxy Center enjoyed its Grand Opening in June. Gary Jerkins and John Durham were present for this wonderful event. See their report below.
Unto the least of these…
“Good morning, John! We sincerely appreciate your concern for the children of Ukraine and thank you for the money collected for the children. We are now thinking about the best way to make it possible for you to send the money. On Monday we will give you an answer and send you the details for sending. God’s blessings to you in everything! On Sunday, we went to a family, brought them some food, congratulated the father of the family on his birthday and spent a good time with them.”
See more photos in the below slideshow. NOTE: The photos are presented in a cycle when viewed on the website. If viewed in the email notice all photos are in the body making it difficult for some to view. It is suggested that you go to the website to see the slideshow!
The Church at Harding Place
For many years Harold Bridges has been a significant help in our efforts to spread the gospel. He and J.A. Simpson assisted in repairs and improvisations in the Judsonia, AR warehouse as shipments were completed. These two were my go-to guys and all I needed to say was, “OK, here’s what we need to do and you two decide how we can do it!” And they always came through!! The health of J.A. and Harold declined and they were unable to continue working in the warehouse. The last few years Harold has been homebound and continued to support the Lord’s work as a small group met in his house and through their offerings much financial support was sent. Recently he and his wife, Jean, were no long able to live at home and they moved to Harding Place in Searcy, AR. But even with this move, Harold continued to gather an assembly and worship and study God’s Word. Each Lord’s Day a small group meets in worship and Bible study.
Delivery to Oleksander and Olena
Just prior to my leaving for Ukraine we loaded a container on 11 April for Kamianets Podilsky. Oleksander and Olena were the NGO coordinators. The container arrived and was unloaded. Olena had made contact with news media sources who came and gave us very good coverage of the project. Olena sent me the link with this message:
“Much of our work goes unnoticed. But there are also cases when there is publicity alerting all of the good deeds. This is always good, because our friends and patrons see from open, public sources that help is reaching those in need. It proves the help is genuine.
So I want to send big “Thank You” to our friends @ Dalraida church of Christ, you are cool and have big hearts, full of love for Ukraine. You, together with the NGO Defense of the State, Khmelnytskyi, Andriy Kasprov, Ruslan Pasyak, Yura Ivanus, Viktor Smolnytskyi, Volodymyr Solyaryk , Vitaly Ksyondz, Volodymyr Dobrogorsky, Meest Poshta show hero’s compassion that will long be remembered.
Opening of Galaxy Center in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine
Dr. Gary Jerkins and John Durham travelled to Ivano-Frankivsk to celebrate the grand opening of the Galaxy Center. This is a project sponsored by SeaStar Kids which was established by classmates from Lipscomb University.
These classmates—men and women share a mutual love for the country and people of Ukraine. They have made numerous trips there. From their trips they discovered a need to help the children of Ukraine and began sponsoring Summer Camps in 2010.
Since 2022, with the expansion of the war that began with Russian invasion in 2014, their efforts expanded to include various projects including a Nashville Area-wide drive to fill 10,000 Family Buckets for families displaced by the war. Their compassion for the children has now founded “the Galaxy Center.”
The Galaxy Center (the name comes from the fact that a collection of sea stars or starfish as they are better known is a “galaxy”) is a continuation of the desire to facilitate our calling to fulfill the passage in James 1:27 “True devotion, the kind that is pure and faultless before God the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their difficulties.” (James 1:27 CEB)
The immediate focus is upon the traumatized children of war. These have been “wounded” in psyche and need healing that comes from Christ’s compassion. These come from places where homes and schedules were destroyed by evil; where they saw parents savagely killed; where they have “nothing but the clothes on their backs”; and, where all stability and security were violently taken from them and their personal value was brutally crushed. Their wounds are deep. Their eyes are often hollow. They have no reason to smile.
Thankfully the SeaStar Kids program was in full operation prior to the war’s outbreak in 2014 (thanks to the vision of Gary Jerkins, John Durham and Ron Swang as well as others). Gary has led a number of medical mission seminars, surgeries and medical teams throughout the years. These endeavors established a network foundation of physical and mental health professionals making the Galaxy Center possible. This professional network includes a number of renown hospitals (Vanderbilt is one) and medical professionals that are now involved in partnering with Ukrainian counterparts. The primary focus is demonstrating the love and compassion of our Lord. The practical focus is providing tangible, compassionate care. Thankfully we have professional psychiatrists, psychologists, and sociologists helping the children, and their families, with the behavioral choices. Gary’s project of assisting the medical professionals years ago has led to the Galaxy Center taking one-step further in opening opportunities for the teaching of the gospel’s compassion.
In its first three-months, the Ukrainian doctors and their families working with the Center hosted numerous events including health screenings for people displaced by the war, lectures on prenatal care and basic immunizations. Several sessions of the “Teddy Bear Hospital” designed to help children learn about healthy habits and become acquainted with doctors in a non-threatening environment have occurred.
The center is offering English classes and has a weekly children’s reading club. Over the next few months, a Counseling Center with licensed trauma therapists to help those impacted by the war will open.
Opportunities for spiritual counselling and Bible studies are offered.
One of the Ukrainian doctors—working as a member of our leadership team—wrote in the invitation to the Grand Opening held on June 26: “We open the doors believing that even in the stormy seas, we can find a direction if there is someone there to support. At Galaxy, we do not just work with children and families — we build cities of trust, acceptance, and mutual support. Every step, every word, every little progress counts here. We are already open and waiting for you. Let’s create a stellar environment together. Because every star is special and yours is no exception ⭐️.”
Please keep this ministry in your prayers.
Below is a slideshow depicting some of the actions you helped accomplish in the Lord’s name!
Thank you for your support and assistance so the Lord’s Church will be recognized and God will receive the glory!
John L. Kachelman, Jr. UKRAINE MISSIONS Dalraida Church of Christ, P. O. Box 3085, Montgomery, AL 36109.
