Easter Cards for Ukraine Relief

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! Our thanks to everyone who has been so generous to our Christmas appeal. Since last fall, we have raised an additional $40,000 with your help & help from our local radio station KKOB. We are pleased to present an especially beautiful icon of Our Lord, the Good Shepherd, for your use at Easter this year. Given all the turmoil in the world today, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, we thought that this image of Jesus lovingly embracing His sheep - us – and the lamb responding to that embrace with complete trust would be especially appropriate. 

In case you ever wondered what happens to the prayer lists that you send in, I encourage you to go to our website, www.missionboronyavo.org. Click on “News and Events” and you will see Bishop Nil Lushchak and the priests of Holy Cross cathedral praying for each and every one of your loved ones during the Christmas Liturgy. They do not stack the petitions on the altar and leave them there, but instead take them in hand and pray for all of these hundreds of names submitted by you, our donors. We have included one of these pictures below. 

For our Easter campaign this year, we have simply designated “UKRAINE RELIEF.” The eparchy (diocese) of Mukachevo continues to serve thousands of displaced people who have sought shelter in the Transcarpathian Oblast of Ukraine. Your donations will go to help pay for temporary housing, rent, food, clothing, and fuel. A special need will be generators to keep refrigerators working, as there will be a crucial need to keep food fresh, since electrical supplies work intermittently at best due to the ongoing Russian bombardments. Sometimes the electricity is off for up to twelve hours or even a few days in different districts.

Per usual, the cards cost $12 for a packet of five. All orders must be in by Palm Sunday, April 2 nd to ensure that you receive them in time for Easter giving. Please note you can enclose your prayer list/s with your card order (see enclosed) OR you can choose to return them after you receive your cards but no later than Easter Sunday, April 9th . Bishop Nil will offer the Divine Liturgy on Easter Sunday on the Old Calendar, which is April 16th this year.

Finally, a few reminders: (1) you are prayed for regularly by the bishop, clergy, and seminarians of Mukachevo; (2) all mailing and postage is paid for by our volunteers, so that as much of your support as possible goes to Eastern Europe; (3) we never sell or distribute any of your personal information to any agency.

Please pray for an end to the war, consolation for the suffering, and peace for all. Thank you for your ongoing support!

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Rev. Christopher L. Zugger, Chaplain