Every day, the aroma of freshly baked bread filled Sergey’s* shop in eastern Ukraine. He, his wife, and seven children routinely delivered the delicious product to various corners of their city, amid the everyday murmur of the community—the hum of traffic, the laughter of children playing, and the barking of dogs.
But one day in March 2022, the sounds all changed. Familiar noises were drowned out by jets roaring overhead and bombs exploding nearby. But, thankfully, on that particular day, Sergey and his family didn’t hear their city coming under attack—they were in a city over 120 miles away purchasing flour.
The family first received the horrific news in a phone call. Their town had been completely destroyed.
They couldn’t return to their home or bakery or what was left of them. Now, they had to seek refuge in the city where they had come to do business.
As the war continued to rage, with frontlines that were constantly shifting, it seemed impossible to know where to run to next. Weeks later, they decided to settle in a third city, but they had nothing. None of their belongings. Nothing they would need to begin a long stay. They’d left their home for a journey of days and the trip was suddenly lasting for the foreseeable future.
If they had to be there awhile, then they would need to rebuild. They wanted to be able to bake again in their exile. They also wanted to begin to minister again in Jesus’ Name as they had done before.
Sergey, a bivocational pastor, and his family had used the bakery back home to support their ministry and as a point of contact in their community. The people living in this new city also needed their support.
But, they weren’t sure where to begin. Their mixer, oven, and all of the other necessary supplies were back home where the bombs hit. They didn’t even have a reliable source of clean water.
After Sergey and his family searched for solutions for many months, Samaritan’s Purse was able to provide him with equipment for a new bakery as well as a six-month supply of flour and other necessary ingredients.
We also came back nine months later to drill a borehole and install a reverse osmosis water filtration system at their bakery. In addition to providing clean water to Sergey and his family, their bakery has become a water point for other Ukrainians.
“This filter helps to purify water and make it drinkable so it can be delivered to other places,” said Sergey.
Two trucks a day now carry fresh water from his bakery to villages nearby.
With a thriving bakery again , Sergey is most excited about how the fresh water and bread helps him deliver news of the Living Water and Bread of Life to his neighbors. This spiritual work is familiar to him.
Sergey and his family worked to evacuate people from danger zones even before Samaritan’s Purse supplied them with equipment for his bakery . They used to drive to frontline areas on rescue missions to transport people to safety from shelling. This heroic work gave them many opportunities to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to pray with residents.
“We want to give people bread, water, and the living Word of God.”
Some of these same evacuees are staying in the city where Sergey’s family has ended up living for several years. Now, they are able to employ some of these people at their bakery, giving them a source of income in the upheaval.
And the bakery continues to be an answer to many prayers for Sergey’s family, their ministry, and the still-hurting communities they serve.
Sergey said, “We want to give people bread, water, and the living Word of God.”
*Name changed for security.
Your support enables Samaritan’s Purse to share the love of Jesus by providing assistance to people impacted by the Russia/Ukraine conflict.