The last buses and minivans of summer have gone home. The campfires have burned down to ash. And here in September, as the air turns crisp and the school year begins again across Ukraine, Russia, and the post-Soviet world, I find myself doing what I do every year at this time — looking back with gratitude, and looking ahead with hope.
“So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire.” — Isaiah 55:11
What a Summer It Was
This year, our Summer of Hope camps reached hundreds of children across war-torn Ukraine, Russia, and other post-Soviet countries. Children arrived carrying wounds you cannot see — the weight of sirens, of displacement, of homes where no one ever prayed. And by the grace of God, day by day, meal by meal, campfire by campfire, they left changed.
I think of Sofia, twelve years old, who asked our mission team, “Does God really run toward people like that?” and heard the answer she needed: “Yes. He is running toward you right now.” I think of Dima, who arrived unable to look anyone in the eye and left painting bright skies and praying out loud. I think of Sergey, once a frightened camper, now a member of our mission team pouring into children the same way someone once poured into him.
They came broken. They left singing. That is what this summer was.
Now the Real Work Begins
Camp is not the end of the story. It is only the beginning.
Right now, in apartments and villages across Ukraine and Russia, children are going back to school carrying something new — a Bible tucked into a backpack, a worship song hummed under their breath, a quiet confidence that they are not forgotten. Our follow-up ministry is where the seeds planted this summer take deeper root. Local churches and pastors are reaching out to the families of children who attended camp. Youth groups and Sunday schools are welcoming new faces. The relationships our mission team built over one week are being carried forward for a lifetime.
One of our pastors told me recently about a boy who came home from camp and began asking so many questions during children’s ministry that the whole class started asking questions with him. That is what follow-up looks like. That is the seed still growing.
A Word From Valery
Valery, our ministry partner in the Odesa region of Ukraine who also serves in the Kyiv region, wrote to me as the camps wrapped up:
“The children have gone home, but our work is far from finished. We are visiting families, checking on the ones who prayed for the first time this summer, and preparing for what comes next. The harvest was good this year. Now we tend what has been planted.” — Valery, Odesa, Ukraine
Looking Toward Winter
As the seasons turn, our ministry turns with them. In the coming months, we begin preparing for our Christmas outreach — bringing the message of Christ to families who have little reason to celebrate — and continuing our Bread Ministry to the elderly, many of whom are already bracing for another difficult winter of cold apartments and uncertain power. The needs do not pause when summer ends, and neither does our commitment to meet them.
Ministry in Russia continues to require wisdom and courage as restrictions on open evangelism remain in place. Our partners continue their quiet, faithful work within local churches, and we continue to stand behind them in prayer and support.
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9
Thank You — And Will You Stay With Us?
If you gave, prayed, or simply cared this summer — thank you. The seeds planted in July and August are still growing, and the work of tending them continues through the fall and winter. If the Lord leads you to give toward our follow-up ministry, our Bread outreach, or our upcoming Christmas outreach, you can do so at www.russianmissions.net. And please keep praying — for the children now back in school, for the families being visited, and for our mission team as they carry this work forward.
Gratefully,
Pastor Vitali Yuchkovski