Connections with Ukraine

 Dear Family in Faith,

Presbyterians are connectional.  We believe our churches, our presbyteries, and our people are “connected” in powerful ways—sometimes by design, but oftentimes, just because.  A few days ago, I participated in one of these ubiquitous “Zoom calls” being introduced to a task force that will be planning worship for an upcoming meeting.  One of the people on the call lives in Lexington, KY—where my dad grew up—and lives in the same part of town where some of my dad’s family still does!  …But I digress. 

In the weeks since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as the whole the world has been struggling to figure out how to respond, we’ve been waiting for news about how Presbyterians can make a difference, seeing so many people in need—and being able to offer ways YOU can help.  …It’s about connections. 

In turns out that 25 years ago, a couple in Palo Duro Presbytery (think the northwest part of Texas) had been called and led through child adoption to begin an amazing ministry with people in Romania, working with Romanian orphans.  Fred and Carolyn White helped start what is now known as NOROC—“New Opportunities for Romanian Orphaned Children,” the letters also come from a Romanian word that means, “God bless.”  This important ministry is headquartered in Tolcea County in Romania along the Danube River—just before the river empties into the Black Sea, near the now-famous incident between Romanian military and a Russian warship on Snake Island—a part of Romania that borders a small part of Ukraine between Moldova and the Black Sea.  This has been a “ground zero” location for Ukranian Refugees in the days since the Russian invasion began. 

NOROC was started in response to a Romanian orphan crisis that began with the end of the cold war and the fall of communism.  A state-sponsored program requiring families to have five children or more forced families into economic crisis being able to support so many children financially, led to huge numbers of abandoned children needing adoption.  Overwhelming numbers meant children were being neglected and suffering horrific consequences.  NOROC began sponsoring a program for women to help children be fed and get physical attention and “play.”  Today, NOROC’s work has expanded, now serving families and helping families support themselves and truly creating “new opportunities” for Romanian children and their families.  It’s a wonderful success story! 

But now …in the aftermath of the invasion …needs and responses have shifted again.  NOROC is in a unique position to respond somewhat immediately to the crush of mostly women and children fleeing the violence in Ukraine.  NOROC’s network of programs and staff and volunteers are already in place to help respond to the crisis and WE are able to support their work by way of being “connected” through our Church.  People we know and trust are directly connected to work happening on the ground; and in addition, NOROC is a licensed NGO (non-government organization) in Romania and a 503(c)3, not-for-profit organization in the United States.  Which means we can make donations here in the United States and have the funds flow directly to needs on the ground—almost in real time. 

You can learn more about NOROC by going to their website.  And here’s the link to their “how to help” page: 

http://www.noroc.org/how-to-help.html

You can make your donation or make a donation safely and securely online.  The “donate” button on the page will take you to a secure webpage used in conjunction with the Presbyterian Foundation; you are asked to indicate that your gift is to be used for Ukraine, or Ukranian Refugees, to ensure your gift gets used exclusively for those purposes. 

You can learn more about this unique connection to Presbyterians in our Synod, by listening to a recent podcast with an interview between Valerie Young (our Synod Leader and Stated Clerk) and Rich Schemph, former Executive Presbyter for Palo Duro Presbytery (now honorably retired but who is involved directly with NOROC) here:

https://www.synodsun.org/sunspots

Pick/click/play the episode on Ukranian Refugees from March 1^st. 

There are other ways to support the response to so many human needs in and around Ukraine—including Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Red Cross, etc.  …this one comes with some “connection” to people in our region who are connected to real people who’ve been doing good work for a while—and are making a real difference right now!  It’s a chance to do something faithful but also bring the world a little closer together. 

See you in Church.