Family Bucket Campaign…
The Family Buckets are a tremendous tool in our efforts. They are easily packed with commodities that are basic to any home. They are easily stored once delivered in Ukraine. They are distributed with ease and received with amazing gratitude. We take them to the frontlines, the IDP cams, the orphanages, the elderly homes and to families who have opened their homes for many children who have been displaced, abandoned, or orphaned by the war.
We planned to load a container with these buckets and other critical commodities the last of February but that has now been pushed to early March. Donations from many are being used to purchase the supplies. Especially prominent on this list, and much appreciated, is the congregation in Prattville, AL and the Glen Allen, VA congregation in the Richmond area. More are filling and will be delivering the buckets for us to include in the container. I received a call from the Elizabethtown Church of Christ, Elizabethtown, KY and hopefully they will be brining some buckets collected by the congregation.
As we pack these buckets, we include greetings sent by elementary students at Alabama Christian Academy and by the Dalraida children’s Bible classes. Each greeting is heart-warming and I am including just a few in this report.
Gif sends this greeting and discusses the critical impact that the Family Buckets makes in his labors for the Lord. Here is the link:
https://www.kachelman.com/ukraine/blog/wp-admin/post.php?post=11769&action=edit
We continue to plead for more to help us collect more buckets. If you need 5-gallon buckets and are near the Dalraida location, we can give you the buckets! Please contact the church office.
News from Gif (pieced together from multiple emails) …
Hello there!
Well, I wish I could join you in the sun. We’re still snowed in quite a bit here and calling for more this weekend! I had hoped the groundhog would be kinder to us this time around.
It has been quite a week so far! We finally got warm enough to melt a little snow and then immediately went below freezing again so it all became ice and all the sidewalks looked like walking on glass. I’ve managed only to fall twice, once while no one was looking, and once at the top of a hill where I was able to just slide down the rest of the hill and make it look like I planned it that way. Now yesterday and today have been about 40, so we’ve melted that layer of ice, but they’re saying we’ll freeze again tomorrow.
Of course, I’m sure you heard about the wonderful “energy ceasefire” promised to Trump by the other side. Trump said it was to be for a week—it lasted two days. In fact, last night was the longest sustained attack on western Ukraine (specifically Ivano-Frankivsk) ever: something like 7 hours. We’ve been told to prepare for another tonight and to charge all generators because today already we have only 4 two-hour periods with electricity.
We made it out to the building one day this week when the roads were clear enough. Still, we couldn’t park on the property because the driveways are covered, but they have cleared enough of the shoulder we could park it there for a few minutes. It’s just impossible to do anything there because there is so much snow and ice built up. Around the gates, we had to dig a little trench and were able to move them enough to get in, but around the vehicle gates it’s not possible. We took a measurement in the only place we could get the measuring tape into and were sitting at about 32 cm of snow, and that wasn’t even the highest point. Fortunately, Pasha had taken a few days off before the blizzard so he wasn’t stuck out there, and I really don’t want him out there while it remains like this, although he really wants to get to work. That said, there’s not much he can do without electricity, so it would be pointless for him to try anyway.
ELECTRIC ISSUE
All that said, here’s the biggest issue we hit this week. The electricity bill for that building in January came in yesterday at 211,000 UAH—$5000. It has NEVER been that high, and it’s absolutely ridiculous that it would ever be that high. We have had to run it for most of December and January to keep the pipes from freezing, but for December, the total was about $1200, which is around what we expect at this time of year. Now it certainly was colder throughout January and probably a good 2 weeks’ worth of deep freezes, but there’s no way that quadruples the bill. Vova tried calling the company yesterday and they basically said “Why are you calling on Friday? We’re closing in 4 hours, call on Monday.” You know, like a good utility company should do. So, he’ll try to call again tomorrow and figure out what’s going on, but we all think it’s outrageous and that something must be wrong. I’m not optimistic though; if we had made some mistake they would expect us to pay immediately, but in this case, if they have made a mistake, then it’ll probably just be “sorry for the inconvenience, please pay the 211k by the 15th and we promise it won’t happen again.” Now, we have enough saved up because we planned on $1k–2K per month in the winter as usual. Anyway, not much we can do today except wait to see what Vova hears on Monday.
Update— Electricity — Vova called and they won’t negotiate anything with him because he’s not the “head of the church.” They did at least give him a little information. They said that they have recently raised the limit on what our organization can use to 7000 kilowatts, and that they charged us based on that number. HOWEVER, they also told him that we didn’t even use half that much in January. So, why charge us for an amount we didn’t use? Well, they wouldn’t tell Vova. Also, who made the decision to raise it to that? They also wouldn’t tell him that. And, why was there no notification? Well, we won’t know until they meet the head of the church. I guess I’ll have to do since I have a piece of paper with that title. Anyway, we have an appointment there on Friday at 1:30 to discuss it. Vova said he is planning to come for support and to understand, but we’ll still need an interpreter since Inna isn’t here. I was thinking of asking Denys or Irina at Galaxy because they are always offering to help if I need, and since they have an organization, maybe they know some of the rules about organizational electricity. If nothing else, Sergiy has offered to come if I need him; his English isn’t as good as the others of course, but if I can’t get them, he’ll be better than nothing.
BUS FIRE
But as much as I’d love to talk about the electricity at length, I have yet another update to share—with pictures because you wouldn’t believe it unless you saw it! I’ll preface by saying I’M OK so you don’t stress too much reading this.
After worship today I was going to drive out to the church building and make sure stuff was shut down, as well as grab some boxes of drink mix to take to Sergiy. On the way there, I was listening to music while driving, and the speakers starting shorting out a bit. I didn’t think much at first because it’s an old van, but probably less than 30 seconds later all the lights flashed and then the van just shut down in the middle of the road. I tried turning the key and nothing happened, then I saw steam coming off the hood, so I thought maybe a radiator issue. But immediately following that I smelled burning rubber and thought perhaps a belt had busted. I was in the middle of the road so I had to wait a few seconds for cars to pass and by the time I opened the van door that “steam” had turned into billowing black smoke. I quickly popped the hood and found a lovely roaring fire on the right side of the engine, melting everything in sight (but, to be honest, felt quite lovely on a freezing day). I ran around to the back of the van to try and find the fire extinguisher but before I could even get the back door open, 4–5 cars had seen the fire and guys were already running to help with their extinguishers. That was awesome! Of course, I was alone so I could barely communicate with them, so I called Inna and got her on the phone. Those guys sprayed for quite some time and even though they could get the flames out briefly, the smoke kept coming and would restart. Someone had called the police and fire department who were there probably 5 minutes later. It took about another 20–30 minutes for the fire department to say it was safe. It “looks like” at this point the battery or alternator just combusted and then it spread up toward the engine. We are very lucky that the van actually shut off, because continuing like that, it would have exploded most likely.
Anyway, the police called a tow truck and asked where I wanted it taken. Well, there’s no point in taking it to the parking lot because what can I do with it there? But also, it’s Sunday, so no car shops are open. So, they started calling shops for me (VERY nice of them) and the only one with an electrician was in Stary Lysets (of course). So, I hopped into the tow truck and rode out to Stary Lysets where the van will now undergo treatment and see if it can be saved/is worth saving. We just spent about $600 on fuel injectors and tires, and with the electricity bill…I’m not sure what to expect honestly. Anyway, it was very fun and a lovely experience that I’ll be sure to write about in my next report. Mainly, I was upset because by the time I got home the afternoon blackout had started and I had to walk the stairs.
Well, enjoy these nice two pictures. I didn’t get a picture of the fire itself of course because we were a little busy, but I did get the aftermath.
Update—Bus Fire—the mechanic sent a video today, it does look like a pretty good bit of damage. He said he’ll charge us $300 for his work, and then an initial $500 for parts, but Vova said that if he’s starting there then we should plan/expect the number for parts to double or triple even. So we could be looking at anything from $1000–$2500. The mechanic also wants us to decide very quickly if we will fix it because if not he wants it out of his shop quickly. The only thing is, we can’t really decide until we know what that electricity bill will be, because if we do have to pay $5000 (which I’ll argue ferociously against), we really won’t be able to spend another $2500 for a van fix, especially since we don’t even really need it until winter is gone. So, Vova’s going to try to buy us a little time with that guy and see what happens after the electricity meeting.
Positive News
Some positive news, my class at UKD is off to a roaring start. I have 8 sophomore students and they are the best of the best! I think we’re all really enjoying the class. Tomorrow, we agreed to watch last weekends “Eurovision” competition together and their task is to explain everything that’s going on in the show to me. I honestly wouldn’t care all that much about it, but they are thrilled about it and I think they all might come! So, I guess I’m learning something new tomorrow.
More positive — Vova told me last night that his internship for UBI begins in March and asked if he could do it with the church here, which is of course a yes from me. He’s doing a lot already so it makes sense, but they’ll have a few more requirements of him, like preaching a little more often and I think even a regular Bible class, so I might hand off Wednesdays to him for awhile. I think that would be useful.
By the way, have you got any plans for a spring trip?
-Gif
BVBIU news from Denys…
Dear friends, Greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Current Situation in Ukraine: This winter, Ukraine is experiencing severe frost. Due to ongoing Russian attacks, thermal power plants have been destroyed in all major cities. As a result, many areas are suffering from lack of electricity and heating, and people are literally freezing in their homes. The situation in many cities is tragically difficult. Electricity is usually available for only 2–3 hours per day, during which people try to charge phones and power banks before power is shut off again.
- Schools and kindergartens are not operating, and all education has moved online.
- Churches have become places of refuge, where people gather to stay warm using gasoline and diesel generators.
Despite all these challenges, we continue teaching and serving faithfully. Prayer Requests: We kindly ask you to pray for us and our students, especially those who are currently serving.
- One of our students, Mykola, who was drafted in November, was undergoing military training. Due to a serious relapse related to a spinal condition, he lost the use of his legs and is now in the hospital.
- Please pray for all our brothers among students and graduates who are serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine—for protection, healing, strength, and God’s peace.
Thank you for standing with us in prayer and support. Your faithfulness is a great encouragement to us during this difficult time. With gratitude and hope in Christ, Denys Sopelnyk
Kropyvnytski, Ukraine news from Sasha Rodnaev
(Note: This is the congregation that formerly assembled in Pokrovsk/Krasnoarmiisk but has had to relocate because of the war. Also please note that Sasha continues working for the Lord. There were rumors he had been drafted into the military but that is not truthful. The Great Oaks congregation (Arlington/Memphis, TN) and the Mt Juliet, TN congregation help sponsor this work.
Throughout January, we continue serving people who have found themselves in difficult life circumstances due to the war and forced displacement. These include elderly people, internally displaced persons, those who live alone, and those for whom it is especially hard to cope on their own.
We gather regularly to support them. People come even in challenging weather conditions. For many, these meetings are not only an opportunity to receive practical help, but also to feel care, attention, and genuine concern. It is very important to see that no one is overlooked or forgotten.
Alongside this, we hold meetings focused on spiritual encouragement. We read the Word together, pray, and fellowship. Often, the hall is completely full. People need not only immediate support, but also hope that helps them keep going.
Everything that is happening here is possible because of your support. It has a real and tangible impact on the lives of specific people.
Thank you to each of you for your involvement, prayers, and trust. We deeply appreciate that you stand with us during this difficult time. With gratitude, Alexander Rodnaev”
John L. Kachelman, Jr., Dalraida Church of Christ, UKRAINE MISSIONS, P.O. Box 3085, Montgomery, AL 36109.
