Ohio-Based New Horizons for Children has operated in Ukraine since 2009. When the prospect of a Russian invasion seemed likely in February, Executive Director Dr. Sherri McClurg traveled to Ukraine to see what could be done. “The plans were to go over before the war to be preventative. How can we help our orphanages? Are there any schools we need to evacuate to get children to a safer area in Ukraine? So that was all in the works – and the war broke out while I was there. Very overwhelming!”
When it became clear the war was not going to be swift and done, “It quickly changed to which schools do need to evacuate? Which ones can we evacuate? It was the middle of a war zone, right, so we were spending time in bunkers, and it was getting really, really, scary and there were distinct moments that really stand out to me where I was just like, ‘Lord, what are we doing here?’… ‘Lord, I’m ready to go home!’ When I get out of this bunker, I’m out of here.”
But Sherri shares the next morning God showed her just what his plan was for her. Representatives from the Ukrainian military asked to meet “and in that conversation they asked if what we were doing with these few, we need to do with a lot of children. And would you stay and partner with us to evacuate children from the east (eastern Ukraine) and move them to the west?” The local government realized the care and professionalism Sherri’s team offered and they wanted to expand that to help even more children in orphanages and boarding schools flee the immediate war zone.
“So, just overnight, God made it very clear his plan and purpose…Let’s get to work!” [hear complete podcast interview] And as you continue to read or listen, you'll hear Sherri's heart-felt response to the question "If you had the opportunity for a face-to-face conversation with Vladimir Putin, what would you say?”
We asked Sherri, a licensed psychologist with a U.S. practice in trauma-informed care, to describe what it’s like when missiles are incoming or shelling is taking place. “It’s incredibly terrifying. The first night I was in an area where the sirens went off, it’s kind of like tornado sirens here in the States. You hear it, you kind of go do your thing. But then, after a few sirens, and you’re hearing this Ukrainian voice blaring…yelling at you to ‘run, hide, take shelter,’ it gets very, very intense very quickly and very scary. And I was an adult who was further away from the fighting zones, and I was feeling that fear. I can’t fathom what these children have gone through and experienced and the amount of terror they have been through being right in these areas where the shelling is ongoing every day. It’s beyond comprehension.”
Safe Havens
So far, working with their partner Aerial Recovery, they have taken in 1,200 children to the western side of the country. And that number is growing. “These children, they’re all in institutional care. They’ve all had complex developmental traumas throughout their life. They have trauma that they’re already carrying. Now we’re pulling them out of these war-torn regions.” Her desire is to keep the kids in their own country where they know the culture and the language. Knowing the sheer number of Ukrainians – in the millions - who have crossed the border into Poland, Romania, and Moldova and the risks facing children, human traffickers for example, Sherri is getting considerable help from the area government to find good buildings to safely secure the children inside Ukraine. She believes many of the children who have crossed the border may never return to Ukraine. “We’re bringing in blankets and bedding and medicine and providing medical care.”
“So, the whole point of the safe havens was to just stop some of the chaos and some of those additional traumas and just create a space to breathe.” Realizing the potential for intensified war to come to western Ukraine, “All of the safe havens are very close to the border, and we have emergency plans in place if we need to emergency-evacuate all the kids across the border, we can do that.”
Looking ahead, the need will continue in different ways for years. “When this conflict resolves, lots of these schools have been blown up. There’s no place for these children to even go back to. And what is this going to look like and what do we need to do? It’s one thing to create a temporary shelter that’s safe and warm and takes care of our needs right now, but these are children, and they’ve got a lot more needs than just this moment of getting them safe.”
This war and the vital need to protect children has drawn Sherri even closer to God, who has responded with wisdom and peace for her. “My fear went from ‘I’m in a bomb shelter and I’m risking everything and I don’t know what’s going to happen’ to 24-hours later, ‘Wow, God has made it very clear what we need to do. He’s paved the way. We just need to be faithful and step-up’ – and the fear went away.” She understands, with the war, “Whatever is going to happen is going to happen. And it’s all in God’s hands. That’s the peace and security that I know being a follower of Jesus Christ, and that’s what we want to be able to bring to these children – that kind of confidence and trust.” She believes that God is saying "You’re not alone in this kind of crisis. There’s a God who loves you, who cares for you and he’s surrounding you with resources and people who are going to make this work."
“So, at the end of the day, it’s my faith that gets me through.”
I asked Sherri an unexpected question – and I admit, I wasn’t sure that I should.
Richard: “If you had the opportunity for a face-to-face conversation with Vladimir Putin, what would you say?”
Sherri: “That’s a good question. At the end of the day, I remind myself God loves this man and yes, he’s doing evil, evil things, but it’s because of the Evil One (Satan), not because of Putin. It’s his being led by evil. And at the end of the day, if I had a sit-down with him, I would just want to convey to him that there’s another way. That the innocence of these children is being taken away from them and there’s another way to go about life and a hope and future. Yeah, I want it to stop, but at the same time I recognize that God loves him like he loves me – and that’s hard to wrap your hands around – and especially when you’re seeing the disaster and deaths. And if there’s any way to redeem that man’s heart, that’s got to be our goal. We need to be praying for him as much as we’re praying for these kids.”
If you would like to know more about New Horizons for Children or come alongside as a partner, here’s their website. https://nhfc.org/
Our complete interview podcast below shares Sherri’s heart, compassion, and determination more than printed words can accomplish. Listen:
