Faith-Based Group Sends 1 Million Meals, Spiritual Support to Ukrainians

Special needs children wait to be evacuated from Sumy, Ukraine, March 15, 2022, where increased shelling has made life dangerous. Courtesy Intercessors for Ukraine

The untold story of the Ukraine war in much of the U.S. mainstream media is how churches and faith-based groups in the United States and abroad are funneling food, medical supplies, and spiritual support to people at the center of that chaotic mess, a spokeswoman for Intercessors for America, one of those groups, told 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 organizations 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 nonprofits, large or small, across the United States.

There are no U.S. federal agencies that calculate the total materials, human resources, and the number of people helped in Ukraine by these nonprofits, 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 underreported activities by churches, faith-based relief organizations, and volunteers converging on the Ukraine crisis are the efforts of the Virginia-based Christian organization Intercessors for America (IFA), which began in 1973 as a prayer network for needs in the United States.

Today, IFA sends extensive information to approximately 300,000 subscribers on its mailing list. But by “a conservative estimate, IFA reaches 1 million people a month through various media platforms” through its international reach, IFA Marketing Director Kris Kubal told The Epoch Times.

Those contacts are bearing fruit during the current crisis in Ukraine, she says.

“In response to requests from our Ukrainian friends, IFA has established a donation website, Ukrainemeals.com, to feed refugees,“ she said. ”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 in the effort.

“It’s people in the church here, helping people in the church distribute aid there,“ she said. “It’s very grassroots, 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

The costs of the effort have been reduced, according to Kubal.

“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 Mercy Chefs, Intercessors for Ukraine, and others are joining the IFA-led effort to feed and aid refugees.

“Through our contacts, we are able to go to places in Ukraine that have no food, no electricity, or water,“ Kubal said. ”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 nonprofit, the spiritual resiliency of Ukrainians is also on the minds of IFA members, according to Kubal.

“When people pray, it gives God an opportunity to perform miracles. 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,“ she said. ”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.”

Money and volunteers continue to pour into IFA, its partner nonprofits, and faith-based organizations across the country.

“I think IFA and other faith-based nonprofits reflect the mindset of the average American,” Kubal 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.”