On October 26, 2022, the team set out for Izyum with a new batch of supplies headed to Izyum. The van and trailer arrived from Lviv through Kyiv and we hit the road for Kharkiv first. The weather was soggy and dreary along the way. We didn’t see sunshine the entire journey. We stayed with a wonderful family on the edge of Kharkiv for the night then headed into Izyum the following morning. The route was different than our journey on September 27, 2022. Largely because Ukraine cleared roads that had previously been blocked.
As we approached the city, we stopped on the edge of town to check in with the perimeter checkpoint and then proceeded into town. With the rain being steady, we didn’t see people milling around like we did on our previous trip. We stopped to film and photograph some of the damaged areas that we did not capture the first trip. Then we proceeded on to the location we previously dropped off supplies and checked in with the support team on site. The team passed out some of the supplies but ultimately were pointed to a church location that had developed a detailed deployment system.
As we approached the city, we stopped on the edge of town to check in with the perimeter checkpoint and then proceeded into town. With the rain being steady, we didn’t see people milling around like we did on our previous trip. We stopped to film and photograph some of the damaged areas that we did not capture the first trip. Then we proceeded on to the location we previously dropped off supplies and checked in with the support team on site. The team passed out some of the supplies but ultimately were pointed to a church location that had developed a detailed deployment system.
Our amazing driver parked the van close to the church and we began to drop off the supplies. Then we filmed an interview with the pastor about the needs of the community. There were some locals in the church who were able to get supplies at the time, but the remaining supplies would be dispatched as the church went through its list of residents.
Then we went back to the area for mass graves. From September’s visit until now, many of the victims under Russian occupation were reburied in a more proper manner and empty graves with number markers remained. The smell of death still lingered compared to what one would experience in a forest in Ukraine. The need to document these stories and how they evolve will continue.
