For most ‘Soccer moms’, the phrase ‘rescuing the team’ might mean showing up with pizza and Cokes after practice. For one team in Ukraine it meant much much more !!

These moms basically showed up, grabbed the team, and, fled the country !!

They didn’t pack … they didn’t plan. They just grabbed the kids and ran.

A couple from our Szolnok church found a soccer team that had escaped from Ukraine. 18 moms with their 25 hungry kids !! Some had only the clothes they were wearing. One little boy didn’t even have shoes !!

And as you can imagine, with half a million refugees crossing into Hungary, the relief system is stretched pretty thin! It only provides the basics. Pretty much a bowl of soup, a slice of bread, and a mat on the floor.

We don’t know all the circumstances, every family group has a story, but the simple facts are, the moms and children were in grave danger, and that none of the fathers came to Hungary because they are all soldiers.

The fathers wanted their families out of there so the kids would not be harmed by the fighting, and so that the Russians would not be able to use the families to blackmail their fathers if they were captured.

Sometimes hiding in basements, they went from shelter to shelter along the way.

These kids are pretty traumatized and their moms are very broken. Some have seen their homes blown up. They are crying for their dads. Some were unable to speak when they got here,

Some members of this group are at risk. Kriszti and Norbi, a young family that grew up in the church in Szolnok are the point people for the soccer team families. Katy and I are still busy with relief supplies going into Ukraine, a weekly Ukrainian language worship service happening in Bonyhad, emergency medical supplies that are being sourced and driven into Ukraine, etc.

Norbi and Kriszti are going over every day to help the Soccer moms. Yesterday they took over 50 pounds of fruit to the families.

They bring over food, snacks, specific items they cannot buy and clothes from the church. Now that the refugees have settled into a student housing dormitory, the kids are doing online school every morning and soccer practice every afternoon at 2:30.

It’s so vital to get the kids involved in something where they will interact and respond.

In this case, Soccer was the obvious common denominator, so we’re getting them equipped with balls and a gym where they can work out and play with local Hungarian teams. It’s so important for them emotionally for them to be able to run, play and practice together. The only things they have left from their lives are their teammates, siblings, and moms !!

A note from Kriszti:

“Hi, we were at (the) school today. 7 children do not have a soccer ball. We want to buy them (balls so they) can train with them. We were able to meet Ukrainian refugee mothers and their children. They are very afraid of the public. They did not say exactly why they were afraid. But one of the moms has a husband in a higher military position.” Kriszti and Norbi

The church bought enough soccer balls so that every kid has one to work out with. Even the really little kids have rubber soccer balls so that they can work out too.

In the student dormitory, meals are brought to them every day. They do have a common kitchen with a small stove, hot pot, and fridge. But being there with nothing, and having to ask for everything has been very hard for the moms. Sometimes they feel embarrassed and ashamed. They were hard-working families in Ukraine who had money and a normal life. (Kriszti and Norbi went shopping for the mom who left so suddenly that her little boy didn’t even have shoes.)

Slowly we’ve gained their trust and they are allowing us to help more on personal levels. Dianna is a social worker who speaks Ukrainian and she has helped us a lot. We told them that God would not leave them alone in trouble. Only now after a couple of weeks, we’ve found out that one little boy on the Soccer team needs special medical care. He’s diabetic and yesterday I ordered things he needs from Germany that aren’t available in Hungary. He still has two weeks left before he runs out but our order will give him another two weeks. There are several steps for him to get thru the paperwork necessary to be covered by the Hungarian medical system. Of course, the mom has no money. There are no banks or cash machines when you are hiding in basements and running from the shelling. And Ukrainian money has no value anymore even if she had any.

A note from Kriszti:

“(One) mom and her 3 year old baby boy … asked for the little boy, a vest instead of the ball. She wanted to go home (homesick for Ukraine) today. Unfortunately, her husband (soldier) was (moved up) to Mariupol in the evening. She is very sad now, she cried. We tried to comfort her. She helps (the other) moms a lot. She’s been with them all day and interpreting. Her parents no longer live. She has no one but her husband. She is very sad now. We could talk a little bit about faith, hope, and trusting God. A couple of days later she was crying but very happy. She is returning to Ukraine. She doesn’t know what will happen there but we are praying for her and she is very happy about that.” Kriszti and Norbi

Please pray for Alona, her husband, and her little one.

Now that they are starting to trust us, they have started sharing the trauma and the desperation of what they have been thru. Before we were sort of just ‘staff’ at yet another refugee camp, now little by little we’re becoming ‘friends’, people they trust as they are starting to settle into a little bit of normal life. In that context, we’ve been able to share about God’s love for them. The interpreter cried and said that they are touched.

A note from Kriszti:

“She was very happy, crying. She returned to Ukraine today. She doesn’t know exactly what will happen at home. We will pray for her, she was very grateful for that.” Kriszti and Norbi

This is the reality of what we’re in the middle of here. Please pray with us for ways to help people work through the shock and pain of what they are experiencing. We are reaching out to them without any preconditions or requirements. Just being there with them tells them ‘you are not alone’. As a church, we are ministering to their needs as best we can !!

Thanks so much for helping us be the “Hands and Feet” of Christ here in Hungary !! If you give so much as a cup of cold water, or medicine, … soccer balls, … a bag of chips, … a vest, … some bananas … !!

Love and blessings to you all !!

Allen & Katy, Directors, Harvest International Ministries, Eastern Edge Team