ICMC delegation visits Ukraine
In March 2023, an ICMC delegation flew to Ukraine on a solidarity visit. Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, ICMC Secretary General, led the delegation and was accompanied by Bruce Compton, Senior Director of International Outreach and Global Health with the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA), and ICMC Program Manager in Ukraine, Christian Kostko.
For this second visit in less than a year, the delegation landed in Lviv, Western Ukraine, before traveling to Chortkiv, Kosiv, Kyiv, Bucha, and Irpin. There, they paid their respect to those who lost their lives, and to their families, since the beginning of the Russian invasion and ensured the people of Ukraine that they were not alone.
The delegation visited all projects funded by ICMC and met with program managers and participants. They also visited local churches and witnessed the engagement of bishops, priests, and parishioners in bringing assistance to those who needed it. Through this trip, they identified new potential projects and expanded partnerships in Ukraine.
Chrortkiv, Western Ukraine
Tetiana Dubyna, Director of the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, western Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Chrortkiv, Western Ukraine
Chrortkiv, Western Ukraine
Tetiana Dubyna, Director of the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, western Ukraine, with Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, Secretary General of ICMC, behind her. This was during a joint delegation visit of ICMC and CHA-USA to Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo (middle left), Bruce Compton, Senior Director of Global Health and International Outreach of the Catholic Health Association of the United States (top left), Bishop Dmytro Hryhorak of the Eparchy of Buchach (middle) and Tetiana Dubyna, Director of the House of Mercy in Chortkiv (second from the right). This is during a joint delegation visit of ICMC and CHA-USA to Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. The ICMC delegation visits Fr. Ihor Skomarowski, spiritual director of the Roman Catholic seminary in Vorzel, outside of Kyiv, standing in front of a statue of the Virgin Mary, gifted to the Seminary by the president of Poland, from his personal chapel. The previous statue was destroyed during the Russian occupation of the Seminary.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. Msgr. Robert J.Vitillo is admiring the painting by British artist Banksy, Irpin.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC's Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. Kateryna, a neighbor of Olga Shatylo in Irpin, welcomes the ICMC delegation. Her family has lived on this land for four generations and owns three houses here, all destroyed by Russian and Ukrainian soldiers fighting in the neighborhood. Currently, the family lives with neighbors as it attempts to rebuild a house. "This is our family nest, our home and as you can see this is all that's left of it. We want to live here. We want to live in Irpin, in our city, on our land," she told the delegation, urging them to tell the world their story. The ICMC delegation and Kateryna visit the ruins of Kateryna's neighborhood in Irpin.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC's Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. Kateryna, a neighbor of Olga Shatylo in Irpin, welcomes the ICMC delegation. Her family has lived on this land for four generations and owns three houses here, all destroyed by Russian and Ukrainian soldiers fighting in the neighborhood. Currently, the family lives with neighbors as it attempts to rebuild a house. "This is our family nest, our home and as you can see this is all that's left of it. We want to live here. We want to live in Irpin, in our city, on our land," she told the delegation, urging them to tell the world their story. The ICMC delegation and Kateryna visit the ruins of Kateryna's neighborhood in Irpin.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. Olga Shatylo shows her neighborhood in Irpin to the ICMC delegation, where she and her neighbors spent weeks hidden in a basement, along with five neighbors, caught in the crossfire between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers in March 2022. She shows the delegation where they hid, where they cooked, how they fetched water, as well as the tanks and cars destroyed during the battle.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. Olga Shatylo shows her neighborhood in Irpin to the ICMC delegation, where she and her neighbors spent weeks hidden in a basement, along with five neighbors, caught in the crossfire between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers in March 2022. She shows the delegation where they hid, where they cooked, how they fetched water, as well as the tanks and cars destroyed during the battle. A stuffed toy left on a destroyed car, Irpin.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. The ICMC delegation visits a Memorial for Ukrainian soldiers fallen since December 2014, Kyiv.
9 March 2023. ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visits Kyiv and Irpin on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the USA. The ICMC delegation walks along a column of destroyed Russian tanks, Kyiv.
ICMC Secretary Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo visiting the Independence Square (Maidan Nezelezhnosti), Kyiv, on a solidarity trip to Ukraine, accompanied by ICMC’s Christian Kostko, coordinator of the Catholic Response for Ukraine Working Group, and by Bruce Compton, senior director of the Catholic Health Association of the U.S.A..
Svitlana Levytska, 20, is one of the people benefiting from being able to stay at the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine. She herself grew up in relatively inhospitable state-run foster care, before being supported more fully and nurtured by the environment and people at the House of Mercy. She is learning to be a part of a family, and to be a mother, for the first time, because it’s something she never experienced herself as a child. She is shown here with the Director of the House of Mercy, Tetiana Dubyna (right). Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
One of the children who is supported by the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
One of the children who is supported by the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Sister Josaphata runs a family-type foster home in Chortkiv, western Ukraine, with the support of the Eparchy of Buchach, an implementing partner of ICMC-supported projects in Ukraine. She has taken 10 children into her home, and urges other to welcome those in need.
Children who are supported by the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Children who are supported by the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Chrortkiv, Western Ukraine
Tetiana Dubyna, the Director of the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine, with the Secretary General of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
People staying at the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine, with members of a joint delegation visit by the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA) in March, 2023. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
Children staying at the House of Mercy in Chortkiv, in Buchach Eparchy, western Ukraine, with members of a joint delegation visit by the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA) in March, 2023. Prior to the escalation of the war when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, the House of Mercy was home to about 80 children, many with cognitive and/or physical disabilities, some of them abandoned or orphaned. All of the residents were evacuated, and those people who shelter here now arrived mostly from the east of the country, where the war is intense. The House of Mercy became home in particular to people with a physical or cognitive disability, who could not travel further while the House of Mercy could support them better than many places.
People praying at the chapel at the St. Nicholas House of Mercy in Lviv, western Ukraine. Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, Secretary General of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), undertook a solidarity visit to Ukraine in March 2023. This is one project ICMC supports. Msgr. Vitillo was joined on the visit to ICMC programming and with Church officials by Bruce Compton, Senior Director of International Outreach and Global Health with the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA) and Christian Kostko, ICMC Program Manager in Ukraine.
Children at St. Nicholas House of Mercy in Lviv, western Ukraine, which has traditionally assisted vulnerable children, but has expanded to provide support to people seeking safety from the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where destruction has been extensive. Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, Secretary General of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) visited in March 2023 during solidarity visit to the country. Msgr. Vitillo was joined on the visit to ICMC programming and with Church officials by Bruce Compton, Senior Director of International Outreach and Global Health with the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA) and ICMC Program Manger in Ukraine, Christian Kostko.
Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, Secretary General of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), during a solidarity visit to Ukraine in March 2023. Msgr. Vitillo was joined on the visit to ICMC programming and with Church officials by Bruce Compton, Senior Director of International Outreach and Global Health with the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA) and Christian Kostko, ICMC Program Manager in Ukraine. Msgr. Vitillo is seen here blessing a boy at the St. Nicholas House of Mercy in Lviv, western Ukraine, which has traditionally assisted vulnerable children, but has expanded to provide support to people seeking safety from the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where destruction has been extensive.
Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, Secretary General of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), left, during a March 2023 solidarity visit to the country. Msgr. Vitillo was joined on the visit to ICMC programming and with Church officials by Bruce Compton, Senior Director of International Outreach and Global Health with the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA), right, and ICMC’s Program Manager in Ukraine, Christian Kostko (center). The three are seen here visiting with children at the St. Nicholas House of Mercy in Lviv, western Ukraine, which has traditionally assisted vulnerable children, but has expanded to provide support to people seeking safety from the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where destruction has been extensive. Father Roman Prokopets, who runs the House of Mercy, is seen in the doorway.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
The Knights of Columbus, a global Catholic fraternal service order, is one of the key implementing partners of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) in Ukraine. ICMC’s programming focuses primarily on psychosocial support and supporting people who have experienced trauma, with a focus on the most vulnerable groups. In Kosiv, in the Carpathian Mountains to the south of Lviv, western Ukraine’s biggest city, ICMC is funding programs for veterans and their wives, so they can more smoothly reintegrate into civilian life after time spent on the frontlines of the war with Russia in eastern Ukraine. These activities have been organized by the Knights of Columbus since the war first broke out in 2014, but now ICMC has partnered with them to continue and to strengthen the work. The financial assistance helps to pay for a team of psychologists, all the costs associated with organizing weekend retreats for counseling, and brings in the support of priest chaplains for spiritual guidance in addition to the psychological support. These photos are taken during a delegation visit to see programming in Ukraine by ICMC and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA-USA). The same group meets over several weekends to find ways to support the veterans within the couple, because after the veteran himself, the family members are the first to feel the impacts of his trauma.
