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The untold story of the Ukraine war in much of American mainstream media is how churches and faith-based organizations in the United States and abroad are funneling food, medical supplies, and spiritual support into the chaotic mess that is war in Ukraine, said a spokeswoman for Intercessors for America to The Epoch Times on March 17.
As the Biden administration pledged hundreds of millions more of dollars in aid to Ukraine on March 16 and well-known agencies such as the Red Cross send hundreds of workers into the field, it may be impossible to fully estimate the additional outpouring of financial donations, money spent or volunteers sent to Ukraine by faith-based non-profits, large or small, across America.
There are no U.S. federal agencies that calculate the total materials, human resources, and the number of people helped in Ukraine by these non-profits, many of which already have extensions and networks in place.
Many of their supporters use their contacts and channels to send relief to stricken areas of the world, such as Ukraine.
Intercessors for America
Among a litany of under-reported activities by churches, faith-based relief agencies, and volunteers converging on the Ukraine crisis, is the long-time Christian agency, Intercessors for America (IFA).
The group began in 1973 as a prayer network for needs in the United States and is based in Virginia near the Washington D.C metropolitan area.
Today, IFA sends extensive information to approximately 300,000 subscribers on their mailing list. But by “a conservative estimate, IFA reaches one million people a month through various media platforms,” with an international reach, said marketing director Kris Kubal to The Epoch Times.
Those contacts are bearing fruit during the current crisis in Ukraine, she said.
“In response to requests from our Ukrainian friends, IFA has established a donation website, Ukrainemeals.com, to feed refugees.
“Through contacts with pastors and churches that we established years ago, we are now positioned, with some partner agencies, to offer direct aid to the Ukrainian people. That is why and how we began Ukraine Meals.
“We’ve already sent 1 million meals to needy people there.”
Kubal emphasized that no government assistance is involved.
“It’s people in the church here, helping people in the church distribute aid there, “she said. “It’s very grass-roots, with average people giving gifts. We’ve had a great response. There’s no government agency, there’s no general relief organization. It’s just people-to-people, and I think it’s basically an untold story.”
Feed and Aid Refugees
Costs have been cut down, she said.
“This effort to provide meals has been streamlined in terms of cost. The providing organizations are not taking a cut. Everything, 100 percent, of donations to Ukrainemeals.com goes to the actual cost of the meals and the delivery system,” she said.
Groups such as MercyChefs, Intercessors for Ukraine, and others are joining the IFA-spearheaded effort to feed and aid refugees.
“And through our contacts, we are able to go to places in Ukraine that have no food, no electricity or water. We know where those places are and how to get there. We also help those who have made it to the border and need something to eat.”
As a Christian non-profit, the spiritual resiliency of Ukrainians is also on the minds of IFA, she said.
“When people pray it gives God an opportunity to perform miracles,” she said, “and that’s what we are seeing in Ukraine. “The pastors there are telling us that many people are turning to God, entrusting their lives to him.
“Probably that won’t be reported here in the mainstream media, but it’s an important facet to many Americans—especially those who are praying for Ukraine as we are—to hear and understand what is happening to help the people spiritually as well as physically.
“I think that’s also why so many people are turning to us at this time for updates. It’s the kind of information they want to know about.”
Reported or not by the media at large, money and volunteers continue to pour into IFA, their partner non-profits, and faith-based organizations across the country.
“I think IFA and other faith-based non-profits, reflect the mindset of the average American,” she said.
“I know that the Federal government does not understand the power the church can bring to help solve problems in any community, and if properly mobilized the church could be the single greatest–and should be the single greatest–source of relief and aid, and outreach that communities should have.”
https://www.theepochtimes.com/untold-story-of-aid-for-ukraine-as-faith-based-group-sends-1-million-meals_4346921.html
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