As the military invasion of Ukraine enters its 50th day on this Good Friday, Pontifical Charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) launched the second phase of its emergency aid package to the country last Monday.
Immediately after the start of the war, ACN announced a first package of 1.95 million dollars for the dioceses, eparchies, and exarchates both in the west and in the east of Ukraine. These funds have already been distributed to their beneficiaries.
In this second phase, significant financial assistance will go directly to the religious, priests, and seminarians who have been housing and caring for the millions of displaced Ukrainians in need of refuge and physical and spiritual sustenance, as they try to make their way to the borders. A total of just over one million dollars has already been approved for this new aid package. In addition to this amount, ACN has approved mass offerings totalling over $869,000 for Ukrainian priests.
It is important that their fellow believers around the world do not forget about them
According to Magda Kaczmarek, project manager of ACN for Ukraine, the funds earmarked for this second phase of support for the Ukrainian Church will reinforce the emergency aid for monasteries and parishes sheltering refugees but will also go towards purchasing generators and vehicles. “The world has responded with generosity to the plight of the Ukrainian people. Many donations are reaching the bordering countries, but there is now a need for vehicles to transport the goods to those who need them in the country, often in locations that have been heavily damaged or that are still under threat,” she explains. “ACN was one of the first organisations to pledge emergency support for Ukraine, a country where we have been funding projects for decades. It is important that the Ukrainians realise that even as this war drags on, with no end in sight, their fellow believers around the world will not forget them, and ACN will continue to look for ways to help effectively, on the ground, through the local church.”
Up until this past Tuesday, a small delegation of three representatives from ACN visited Ukraine in a show of solidarity and to determine the most pressing needs of partners on the ground.
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