As I start writing this blog, we are in a hotel in Kyiv
(Kiev for those of you that are Russian speaking) and are listening to BBC
world news. A referendum is being held in
eastern Ukraine to determine its ongoing relationship to Ukraine. We do not know the results yet and do not
know what impact that will have on events in Ukraine. We recognize that there is some danger in
being in this part of the world. My mother
(bless her soul) always warned me about coming here. Obviously I did not listen to my mother.
My mother’s fears were based on her own experiences in
Ukraine during the troubled times of the Civil War following World War I. She had heard of an MCC worker who came to
their area in 1920 and who disappeared. It was presumed that he was killed by
the Communists. I came across some
information on that incident this week.
During the unsettled times in Russia during the Civil War,
the Mennonites in North American became aware of the suffering of their
co-religionists and wanted to help. Organizing
this help was a problem as there was no Mennonite institution that could act on
behalf of all the diverse Mennonite groups.
The driving force for this initiative came from the “Swiss” Mennonites
of Pennsylvania. It resulted in the
creation of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC as it is known today) and its
objective was to mobilize the assistance of all Mennonites in North America and
provide humanitarian aid to the areas where the Mennonites were living in
Ukraine. This was a very difficult task
as times were unsettled. Three MCC
workers were dispatched to reach the Mennonites of southern Ukraine. They came via Constantinople (Istanbul) where
they landed on September 27, 1920. One
of them by the name of Clayton Kratz from Pennsylvania reached Molochansk
(formerly called Halbstadt) and was based there. This is where the present day Mennonite
Centre is located. Clayton arrived at a
time when the White Army under General Wrangel was in control of the area. His immediate assignment was to establish the
headquarters to enable MCC to provide food relief in the area. As the Red army (communists) gained strength
and started advancing, Clayton Kratz was warned that he should evacuate to the
south with the retreating White Army. He
chose not to do this. He felt that as a neutral
American relief worker that he would be safe.
He was wrong. He was last seen in
the Mennonite village of Fuerstenwerder (now called Balkavoya) where he was
arrested by the Red Army. After that he
simply vanished.
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| Clayton Kratz (1896-1920) |
Despite the setback of losing one of their workers, MCC was
successful in setting up a number of soup kitchens which fed the surrounding
population, regardless of religious affiliation. My mother has frequently acknowledged that her
family would have starved without that assistance. I recall my mother telling me of the attempt
by herself ,as a 10 year old, to approach the MCC workers in her area and
request an undergarment for her mother.
It was her mother’s birthday and she wanted to give her something. When I inquired if she was successful, I still
recall the resigned shrug of her shoulder as she said, “Well I guess they just
could not help everyone”.
The Mennonite Centre today also cannot help everyone. We also have to establish priorities and use
discernment in providing assistance. A
request that I referenced in an earlier blog is that of Oksana Donets. She is the 35 year old mother of a lovely 8
year old girl. Oksana fractured her hip
at the age of 12 in what appears to have been a karate match. This was initially misdiagnosed in the Tokmak
hospital. She has since undergone 6
surgeries to correct the problem. The
situation was aggravated 8 years ago in a car accident where Oksana broke her
leg and had her daughter delivered by emergency C-section. Recently there has been a considerable
deterioration in the hip. Oksana is in
constant pain and cannot walk. She is a
virtual prisoner in her mother’s second floor walk-up apartment. We visited her there and took some pictures.
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| Oksana Donets with her daughter Valerie in Better Times |
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| Oksana and her daughter Valerie now |
Oksana lives in a village (Juschanlee) which used to be
the site of an estate owned by Johann Cornies (for those who do not recognize
the name, he is the closest the Mennonites in Russia ever came to having their
own czar). The cost of the artificial hip is $7100. This is well beyond the usual level of
assistance that we provide to individuals. The board of the Mennonite Centre
has authorized that we do a special fund-raising for Oksana. If you wish to help, you can go to: http://www.mennonitecentre.ca/Fundraising.html
for specific instructions.
For more information on the work of the Mennonite Centre,
please go to: http://www.mennonitecentre.ca/
You can also join Facebook and follow us at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mennonite-Centre-Ukraine/735361069838076
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