A Shortened Visit

Three refuge families

 Impressions from a Shortened Trip

My  first week ended with a memorial service for the Dutch victims of the Malaysian Airliner plane crash. The second week ended with a celebration of joy for the re-opening of the Schoensee Mennonite Church, now the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. The third week ended with an intense visit with friends in their home where we all asked the question, "What does this all mean?" Here is my response to the question.

While a major cultural divide is developing between the two countries, I am not convinced it is so divisive in communities, and families. While those of Ukrainian background are very patriotic to their emerging country , many who have Russian background are similarly inclined. This seems particularly true of young people and young families. Frankly they see a better future looking westward. I suspect the young people who apparently painted the rails alternately blue and yellow on the great Dnieper dam didn't only speak Ukrainian. The painful division in families comes about when siblings are separated by country. The propaganda information war, particularly from the North say Ukrainians, has resulted in deep differences that may take generations to overcome. This is not the only reason for family stress. Mothers fear the call to arms for their sons and husbands. One family has two sons studying medicine. They are terrified their skilled children will be called to serve. The Director of a Music School recently found that his band teacher has been called up.

The takeover of Crimea is costly on all sides. In past summers whenever you took the busy and somewhat dangerous highway between Melitopol and Zaporozhye you could expect to see a significant number of vehicles bearing Russian license plates. On Friday I saw none on the road or in the city. Businesses on both sides of the border counting on a brisk tourism season must really be hurting. Many people in Ukraine  said to me they will not return to Crimea while it is Russian. In fact Livov in the West appears to be an attractive destination spot for many. The establishment of trade barriers on both sides will hurt farmers. Right beside the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Schoensee is a pig farm. I fear the squealing of the piglets will soon be joined by the owner when the price of pork drops.

On the bright side, the fields I saw looked good with lots of corn and the usual open vistas of sunflowers. Winter wheat yields were very good. On the other hand, every Ukrainian I met is praying for a mild winter. Allowable classroom temperature levels have been dropped two degrees, I believe to 16 degrees, and some are turning to electrical radiators to make up for the reduction in gas.

I never really understood what our Mennonite mothers went through in the great trek to the West in 1944 until I saw refugee mothers from Ludansk with their inquisitive children staying at the Mennonite Church in Nikolaipol. Olga, our Director in Zaporozhye was chatting with a mother when suddenly a gust of wind slammed the door behind her. Her body jumped and her face froze in a look of terrified fear that I can't forget.  She described how she and others were held hostage by pro - Russian troops and were told at the count of three they would be shot unless the Ukrainian forces backed off. They did back off. There was no room on the train so they stood for hours in the space between train cars as it moved westward. I told the mothers that probably they were not the first to seek refuge in this church. It could have happened 70 years earlier. They were unbelieving when Olga told the story of other mothers who cried their way westward.

While this is a war that is being fought on the fields and in the cities, it is also on social media with the ever present smart phone. Soldiers give updates to friends and these are relayed as prayer requests or praise items in church services. The plight of civilians can immediately be sent out. Many turn on the news first thing in the morning and the last thing at night.

The ongoing safety of people from the West continues to pose challenges. Short-term visits in the larger cities, where anonymity is easier, present fewer personal safety concerns. However, greater care must be taken in longer term stays in villages where you are easily noticed. Knowing that I had been in Molochansk for three weeks and that there was potential for more disruption in neighbouring areas, I decided it was best to return now to Canada. While we will join other humanitarian aid organizations in not having a longer term Western presence for now, we have procedures in place to fund our refugee, medical, student, seniors, and children's programs.

Thank you for your support.

Ben Stobbe


To contribute to the work of the Mennonite Centre in Ukraine you can make your donations to "Friends of the Mennonite Centre in Ukraine." All cheques should be mailed to George Dyck, Treasurer, 3675 North Service Rd., Beamsville, Ontario, Canada, L0R 1B1.
If you wish to donate online go to the website, www.canadahelps.org, key in "Mennonite Centre Ukraine" and click on the search button. Then click on "View Profile" and then "Donate Now".
If you want to see our Facebook site go to, https://www.facebook.com/pages/MennoniteCentreUkraine/735361069838076.
Our website is at , https://www.MennoniteCentre.ca.

From Mennonite to Ukrainian Greek Catholic in 80 years

 It was a blistering hot summer day when people gathered to attend the opening of a village church. The service began with church leaders on stage participating in opening prayer, and the building being sanctified and dedicated. Later, the hymn "Grosser Gott Wir Loben Dich", was sung in German and greetings were extended from a Mennonite Pastor.  The much loved  German book "Geistliche Lieder und Gelegenheits Gedichte" ("Spiritual Songs and Poems for Various Occasions") by pastor/poet Bernhard Harder and published in 1888, was presented to the Church. Government dignitaries were present and friends came from surrounding communities.  The service ended with communion and then there was an outside communal meal with borscht. This was just part of the nearly 3 hour opening service of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the village of Snegurevka, formerly called Schoensee.

The original church was built in 1909. It was the largest Mennonite church in South Russia, now Ukraine. In 1934 this building with a fresco ceiling painted by an Italian artist, was closed by the Soviet authorities and became a granary. By the time Mennonite tourists returned to visit in the early 1990s only the basics remained, with original brick walls and steel roof beams, which I believe were installed later. Trees were taking over inside, and garbage was everywhere. It was a picture of neglect and despair.

In 2011 Father Peter Krenitsky, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest with a parish in Melitopol, visited the village and spotted the remains. He saw opportunity, where we saw costs; he had dreams where we had nightmares. With his genuinely warm smile, his quiet voice, and grasp of many languages, he brought out the best in you.  Soon he had parishioners coming to clear out the trees, and the seminary students laying down a cement floor. Friends from Czech and other Eastern European countries took their holidays here to help build. The Mennonite Centre provided funds for the floor and the ceiling, for which we received a warm applause at the service. After the service a women came up to me and said, "I can't believe how the Mennonite Centre seems to get involved in every project in this area."

This all-Ukrainian service with about 300 in attendance came at a much needed time in Eastern Ukraine. I had the sense that the work of our grandparents here provided the foundation for a renewal in this community, and in this church. In fact I understand that speakers used this occasion to call for renewal in the country. Zaporozhye pastor Boris Letkeman's comments were well received and Dema Bratchenko, Olga Rubel and I joined Boris and the young men from the seminary in singing, in German, "Great God We Praise You." For those of you who unfortunately are aware of my unique abilities in this area, do not despair, I was restrained in voice and volume. I also joined the villagers in taking communion from Father Peter.

The Bernard Harder book I referred to was donated by John B.Giesbrecht fom Vineland, Ontario. Actually John donated to the Mennonite Centre two books and I took the liberty of giving one to this Church as a gift from John and the Centre. John's grandparents came from this village and there is every reason to believe this specific book was used in this Church in the early 1900s. A great homecoming; thank you John. Pictures of the original church found in Rudy Friesen's book, "Building on the Past," were on display in the entrance.

After spending so much time focusing on the frightening events four hours eastward, it was good to come together to embrace the past, pray for the present, and look forward to a brighter future.

Pictures on this service will be on our Facebook page and our website.

Thank you for your interest,

Ben Stobbe

To contribute to the work of the Mennonite Centre in Ukraine you can make your donations to "Friends of the Mennonite Centre in Ukraine." All cheques should be mailed to George Dyck, Treasurer, 3675 North Service Rd., Beamsville, Ontario, Canada, L0R 1B1.
If you wish to donate online go to the website, www.canadahelps.org, key in "Mennonite Centre Ukraine" and click on the search button. Then click on "View Profile" and then "Donate Now".
If you want to see our Facebook site go to, https://www.facebook.com/pages/MennoniteCentreUkraine/735361069838076.
Our website is at , https://www.MennoniteCentre.ca.