“Obnova Camp” for Ukrainian Defenders

From August 16–21, 2026, a missionary team from the Pacific Association and House of the Gospel Church in Fresno, together with Ukrainian ministry partners, held a five-day retreat called “Onova Camp” for military personnel wounded during the war in Ukraine and members of their families.

The retreat was held at Dzherelo Zhyttia Church in the Chernivtsi region. This year, 93 people participated in the project. The program for the service members also included a tour of Chernivtsi National University.

Preparations for the retreat began in September 2025. The team raised funds, promoted the project, developed the program, and recruited the necessary specialists. Beginning in April 2026, team members from the United States and Ukraine met regularly via Zoom to plan each day of the retreat and discuss how they could most effectively assist the participants.

Onova Camp is a joint project of the Pacific Association’s Missions Department and House of the Gospel Church in Fresno. Over the course of the project, a permanent team has been formed consisting of professional Christian psychologists, military chaplains, and church leaders.

One of the project’s specialists is Yulia Vorobyevskaya, a psychologist who works with the regional administration in Khmelnytskyi. She counsels wounded Ukrainian service members and invites those who need ongoing support to attend Onova Camp and participate in follow-up meetings after the retreat.

Another member of the team is Valeriy Khoma, a former attorney and colonel who now serves as a military chaplain in the Khmelnytskyi region and as a pastor of a church in Khmelnytskyi. His military and pastoral experience is especially valuable when working with service members facing the severe consequences of war.

Yuri Kovalenko represents House of the Gospel Church in Fresno and is responsible for the project’s financial support. This year, the church’s pastor, Vitaliy Yasnitsky, also traveled to Ukraine with his wife, Galina. Their journey from California took them through San Francisco and Warsaw, across the Polish-Ukrainian border to Khmelnytskyi, and then onward to Chernivtsi.

The primary purpose of Onova Camp is to provide spiritual, psychological, and practical support to military personnel and their families. Many participants have experienced combat, sustained severe injuries, and must now cope with the physical and psychological consequences.

For a person who has lost a limb, experienced deep psychological trauma, or been forced to change their entire way of life, returning to civilian life presents a serious challenge. Such a person needs more than medical treatment and prosthetic care. They also need help accepting their new reality, rebuilding relationships with loved ones, and regaining inner stability.

For this reason, the retreat placed considerable emphasis on personal interaction, individual counseling with psychologists and chaplains, spiritual conversations, group activities, and time spent together.

The Christian focus of the program held a special place throughout the retreat. The team spoke to the participants about the hope found in Jesus Christ and assured them that even after severe trials, a person can find renewed meaning and strength to continue living and caring for themselves and their family.

Among this year’s participants were Ruslan and Viktoria. They explained that after being wounded, a service member faces numerous challenges that can be extremely difficult to overcome alone. The consequences of war affect not only the wounded individual but the entire family.

Ruslan and Viktoria learned about the project from friends who had participated in rehabilitation the previous year. Those friends encouraged them to attend Onova Camp. When the couple arrived at the retreat, they were deeply moved by the love, attention, and care they received from people they had never met before. They said that the individual counseling, personal conversations, wise advice, spiritual encouragement, and practical assistance contributed to their inner healing and strengthened their family.

“We arrived as strangers, but you became like family and close friends to us,” the participants shared.

The final evening of the retreat was especially meaningful. The organizers invited the service members and their families to pray together. Everyone stood and turned to the Lord with prayers of gratitude and requests for His help in the days ahead.

For the team, this became one of the most important moments of the entire project. The primary goal of Onova Camp is not simply to spend several days together, but to give people hope, provide support, and assure them that they do not have to face their trials alone.

The organizers express their sincere gratitude to the Pacific Association, its Missions Department, House of the Gospel Church in Fresno, and all the sponsors, volunteers, and individuals whose involvement makes it possible for this ministry to continue.

The Gospel of John says:

“And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together” (John 4:36).

For the Onova Camp team, these words have become more than a biblical quotation. They express the meaning of the ministry the team continues to carry out for Ukrainian defenders and their families.

Vitaliy Mandrik