The warehouse and office of Ukraine for Christ, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ Int in Ukraine, was destroyed in a Russian strike on the evening of August 28.

While the ministry did not disclose the exact location of its facility, it explained that it was “on the property of our good friends’ business, which was also completely destroyed”.

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“It was much more than a storage facility. It became a hub where more than 1,000 volunteers from different churches and charitable organizations served over the years. It was also the place from which our teams left for trips to communities near the front lines”, they said in an statement on social media.

29 old people died

The Christian ministry pointed out that they were assessing their losses, but did not report wether there had been any casualty. However, its Christian partner in the country, Global Aid Network (GAiN) Canada, informed that an elderly care home beside the warehouse was also hit, and 29 elderly residents died.

“We are heartbroken for those who were killed, for their families, and for everyone who has been affected by this terrible attack”, wrote GaiN on its social media.

They called on Christians worldwide to pray for “the families mourning the loss of loved ones; those who were injured and traumatized, our partners and everyone working at the warehouse”, as well as for “protection and strength for those continuing to serve vulnerable communities”.

“Everything has been destroyed”

Ukraine for Christ used the destroyed warehouse every day for the past four years, to prepare “175,000 food boxes, including Christmas boxes, and special boxes for military personnel”. They also “received more than 600 tons of humanitarian aid” from their partners in Germany, the Netherlands, and Austria”.

In adition to preparing food boxes, they converted shipping containers into homes for displaced families, and serve the families of those who had been killed, chaplains, and veterans across Ukraine.

All that was possible thanks to the help of over 300 churches from different denominations and non-profit organizations that worked with the ministry in different ways and “helped distribute aid throughout Ukraine”.

“Now, everything has been destroyed: food, boxes, equipment, tools, generators, vehicles, materials from the evangelistic outreach known as The Four - including bracelets, patches, and other items - as well as a large amount of humanitarian aid”, they lamented.

“Please, pray. This is not the end”

Ukraine for Christ asked Christians to “pray with us for wisdom, strength, and clarity about our next steps”.

“We believe this is not the end. God will give us opportunities to continue this ministry and to bring the hope of the Gospel, which Ukrainians need more and more with each passing day”, they concluded.