When It Seems All You Can Do Is Watch And Pray

The Oskaloosa bandstand was lit with the colors of Ukraine this week as a sign of solidarity.

March 5th, 2022

Oskaloosa, Iowa – Half a world away, former Ukrainians, Ukrainians, and those that support them watch as the Russian Army invades their home.

Vera Babich and Sergiy Nagorny are US Citizens that immigrated here from Ukraine approximately 20 years ago. They still have family, friends, and strong ties to their former home.

Vera describes her life before and after the invasion as two different things. “The whole world just changed to many people and especially to those who have connections in Ukraine.”

Six days into the war, Vera could still talk with her parents in Kyiv, Ukraine. She describes that many mornings begin “with basically a headcount, you know, trying to get in touch with everybody who’s there and making sure everybody’s still okay.”

Vera’s parents, who are in their 70s, decided to stay in Kyiv versus being stuck someplace on the road.

When it comes to the support that Vera and Sergiy are getting from their friends, neighbors, co-workers, and community here, Vera describes it as overwhelming. “I almost feel guilty with the amount of attention we’re getting. I mean, we are not the victims. There are people over there in Ukraine who go through real suffering right now.”

In Oskaloosa, the couple has friends from Russia. She says the situation doesn’t make their friendship awkward. “Nobody feels good about what’s happening.”

“They are definitely on the right side of this, but it’s difficult because even for me, I do have family in Russia,” explained Vera.

That shared history between the two nations over the centuries makes this even more difficult.

When asked what she would say to somebody in Ukraine fighting, rifle in hand, for freedom.

“We stand with them. They need to stand strong,” and then Vera shares unique words that all Ukrainians tell each other right now. “Glory to Ukraine. Glory to its heroes. Glory to the nation. Death to the enemies.”

“The national pride is very strong, says Vera. “It’s been 30 years. There’s a whole generation that grew up in [an] independent country. They know what they’re fighting for.”

Being stunned still at where the war has gone so quickly, Vera and Sergiy are like many others around the world, the United States, and here in Oskaloosa, this is 2022, and how has diplomacy not helped.

After the pandemic, Vera was able to see her parents this past summer and had plans to return this summer, but those plans are on hold until the situation there stabilizes.

It’s been hard for Vera; of course, she’d like to have her parents out of danger. “They do not want to [leave] at this point. They’ve been very stubborn. Which I probably will be at that age too.”

Her parents lived under Soviet rule, and Vera says the current situation is scarier because “it’s even more unbelievable for them.”

They had grown up with a friendly Soviet partner in Russia during their lifetime. “Being one country and everything. So for them, it’s even more unbelievable of what’s going on right now.”

Her parents are much like many older Ukrainians who’s been observed either telling Russian forces to go home or offering sunflower seeds so the soldier’s dead body would help the flower grow.

“People are standing up. People are not afraid,” says Vera.

The Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church on the east side of Oskaloosa, and their pastor, Roger Neumann, have enjoyed being a sister church to one in Kyiv for about a decade now.

There is a special gift from Ukraine that makes its appearance at the church every year. In Kyiv, the older women make the decorated eggs to sell for extra money. Each egg is blown clean, and then the intricate process of applying wax and dying the eggs begins. “They want us to have these”, Neumann said. The elderly women are the ones to typically make the delicate eggs.

These are just a few of the 40 hand-decorated Easter Eggs from Ukraine on display at Grace Evangelical Church in Oskaloosa.

In 2014, we had a chance to meet Bishop V’yacheslav Horpynchuk with the Ukrainian Lutheran Church.

He’s in Ukraine helping to find ways of offering assistance, information, and, of course, prayer for his fellow Ukrainian. He often holds prayer live on social media.

Neumann, in the past, has traveled to Ukraine several times, getting to know the people and culture.

He says that the congregation in Ukraine initially didn’t believe Russia would invade, as they’ve gone through threats in the past.

“It’s real now,” said Neumann.

So now, the congregation is experiencing a mixture of fear, anger, and other emotions that you don’t want to have.

Several people from the congregation in Kyiv spend nights in the subway systems because the air raid sirens are going off.

“Our congregation in Kharkiv is under attack,” said Neumann. “I just heard this morning that they’re [Russia] using cluster bombs, and they’re bombing residential areas, hospitals, soft targets.”

“Why,” says Neumann. “Senseless.”

“Remarkable,” Neumann says of the world rallying around Ukraine. “They know it, and they appreciate it beyond what anyone can say.”

The people of Ukraine want the same thing as we do, Neumann explains. They want their children to grow up and be “respectable young people. ”

On the people of Ukraine, Neumann says, “They’re very polite. They’re very thankful. They’re very loving, and it’s just been a good experience getting to know them, and I feel for what they’re going through now.”

Having seen Ukrainians during a time of people, we asked him if he was surprised by the ferocity they are now fighting back.

Neumann shared some thoughts. “Once you’ve tasted freedom, you don’t want to give it up. So many of them can remember back before 1991 when the Russians occupied them. They don’t want ever to go back to that again.”

“But no, it doesn’t surprise me one bit that they’re fighting for their freedom and their want to defend their country. I think a mistake was made, and thinking that they will lay down their arms and welcome the Russians coming in and like liberating them. We don’t want to go back to tyranny. We don’t want to go back to that type of life, and so it doesn’t really surprise me.”

The people of Ukraine have impacted Neumann and his family, and after the death of a son, a memorial fund was made. As a result, buildings were being bought in Ukraine to become churches and others were upgraded from those funds.

Neumann also shared, “The bishop has told me on a number of occasions, we talk every day, a number of these days, he’ll say, ‘Dear brother, I look forward to seeing you again, either here on this earth and Ukraine or else in heaven’. And that is kind of the attitude of the Christian there. We know we’re always going to be all right, whether we see you here on this earth or in heaven. They don’t know what will happen. If the Russians come in and they’re killed, they know that we’ll see each other again in heaven. That’s really their attitude, and that’s, I think, their strength, because it helps with the fear and the anxiety.”

Oskaloosa News had the opportunity to speak with Rev. V’yacheslav Horpynchuk over the weekend via Zoom.

He is staying in Kyiv, helping the members of his congregation and his fellow Ukrainian after he took his wife to safety.

He stays in touch with those from his congregations in Kyiv, encouraging them and praying with them. “Supporting them with all I can muster right now.”

Horpynchuk says that escape routes from the city of Kyiv can be difficult as the Russian military may occupy a road half a day, catching people off guard and then killing individuals attempting to flee.

“There was a tragic event yesterday,” says Horpynchuk. He described how his son’s friends tried to leave the city along with members of his congregation, all under 22 years of age. “They took two cars and began to drive on the road that was safe like half a day ago. As they were driving then one car disappeared. One car was able to somehow get through that column [of Russians] and escape and returned to Kyiv. They then found that the group of young people who were in the other car was shot dead by the Russians.”

Horpynchuk said he wanted to thank Pastor Neumann for his dedicated work helping Ukraine and Ukrainians. “He’s a man of faith. A man of commitment.”

Horpynchuk says that looking around, he can see that Putin’s plan has failed. “Our sovereign soldier said that I’ve got more tanks from Russia now in ten days than they had from the government from our plants in 10 years.”

“We feel that people in America pray for us. We can say that the Lord is leading our troops,” added Horpynchuk “We thank the Lord that he takes care of our country and also that he gives his spirit to our army, and we are proud of the Ukrainian army.”

Horpynchuk did say the Ukrainians appeal to the United States Government, to “Help us with protection of closed skies. We have massive bombing and rocketing, with some missiles on our residential areas.”

“These are war crimes,” says Horpynchuk of the destruction taking place in Ukraine. “This is a genocide.”

Horpynchuk once again appealed to the American citizens to ask for a no-fly-zone “to help Ukraine close the skies of Ukraine because it’s not attacking just the military. It’s a war against the Ukrainian nation. It’s the extermination of the Ukrainian city population.”

“We are thankful to the American government that they sent us Javelins. They sent us stingers. These things help, but we need air defense systems because stinger’s javelins work against tanks works against helicopters. These planes fly high. Our defense systems are outdated.”

Ukrainians have been trying to defend against the latest Russian airpower. They have also been fighting against incoming missiles and artillery fire, including vacuum bombs that suck the oxygen out of the air, especially in enclosed spaces such as shelters. “We need protection.”

We asked Pastor Horpynchuk about being a protestant pastor now in a Russian-held territory. “They [Russians soldiers] killed my grandfather who was a Christian educator” in 1944.

Horpynchuk then spoke about the Russian military when they annexed Crimea in 2014, and the Russian military began to murder Protestant pastors. “Protestant, for they are servants of America and Western Europe. So they look at Protestants as evil people who are run by the West who should be exterminated.”

“These things are happening,” added Horpynchuk. “We don’t know when or where it catches you.”

“If they come. They may announce a hunt for you,” said Horpynchuk. “Like they did in 1943, 1949, and 2014.

When it comes to the strength and desire of Ukrainians to fight back, Horpynchuk says he expected this type of resistance.

“Ukrainians, everyone resists the Russian occupation,” says Horpynchuk. “They fight with tanks, with Javelins, with empty hands, with Molitive cocktails.

Images of the Ukrainian farmers taking away Russian tanks that have run out of fuel help to lift the spirits of Ukrainians. “They pull humorously to their farms and turn them into tractors,” says Horpynchuk of the humorous images. “Humor is also good.”

Horpynchuk worries about his son, who has joined the Ukrainian Army and works to disrupt Russian saboteurs. “We will not surrender, as long as we live. We are going to resist, and I am convinced Ukraine will gain victory. We need support.”

Horpynchuk has seen the image of the Oskaloosa bandstand illuminated with the colors of Ukraine. “Please thank the people of Oskaloosa, Iowa. We appreciate it. It’s so important to know we are not alone.”

Upon closing, I thanked Horpynchuk for his time.

“If we are alive and still on this side of heaven, we’ll talk,” said Horpynchuk in closing. Thanking the people of America for their support.”