As we enter the third year of war in Ukraine and the tragic death toll reaches impressive numbers - the Ukrainian government speaks of 31,000 soldiers killed in the fighting, the Community offered closeness and support to the women who have lost their loved ones.
Widows and mothers who lost their children in the frontline areas - such as Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, Pervomaiske, Kharkiv - have been sent aid. Those who are displaced in areas closer to Lviv have been invited to come to the Sant'Egidio Centre to receive aid in person.
They arrived by bus, together, to support one another. Their day at the Sant'Egidio centre was an opportunity to receive concrete help. But above all they found people ready to listen to them, to understand their pain. It was a moment of deep emotion, for the women welcomed and for the Community that opened its arms to them. Even among them, among the women of Sant'Egidio who are volunteers in the Community's aid centres, many are displaced, some have their husbands or children at the front. But they have found the strength and energy to take in so much pain and transfigure it into joy, gratitude and emotion. They have not been forgotten, some of them said, it gives new hope. Indeed, in this dark time, Sant'Egidio in Ukraine continues to keep hope alive with prayer, solidarity and welcome.
