By COLlive reporter
Marking four years since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, a U.S. delegation met with Rabbi Avraham Wolff, Chabad Shliach and Chief Rabbi of Odessa and Southern Ukraine, to hear firsthand about the condition of children under the care of the “Mishpacha Ukraine” network.
The delegation included U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal, Sheldon Whitehouse, Chris Coons and Jeanne Shaheen, together with U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Julie Davis and Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States Olha Stefanishyna.
The meeting focused on the humanitarian work carried out by the Jewish community in Odessa during the ongoing conflict.
Rabbi Wolff outlined the current situation of the children growing up within the Mishpacha Ukraine educational and welfare network. Established more than 25 years ago by the Jewish community in Odessa, the network provides housing, nutrition and schooling for hundreds of orphans and children from families in distress.
Since the start of the war, the orphanage has become a critical humanitarian lifeline, absorbing children who have lost stability and security due to the fighting and offering them a protected environment amid the broader national crisis.
Members of the delegation expressed deep emotion at what they heard. “When you hear about a child who grows up here, studies here and lives his childhood here with joy and a smile, while outside there is war, and that child remains calm and celebrates holidays and birthdays with cake and balloons, it is deeply moving,” said the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States added that what has been built over the years and continues to function even during wartime commands profound respect.
Concluding the meeting, Rabbi Wolff emphasized that caring for the children’s daily needs, education and long-term future requires significant resources, and that continued international support makes the work possible. “We are seeking partners who understand what is at stake,” he said.
Rabbi Wolf and his Beautiful state of the art building for Jewish orphans is heart warming and a deeply moving experience to see. When we visited, we were Looking at the tiny shoes of Little two year-old children who are being saved exclusively because of the Rebbe’s Shluchim. Seeing the orphanage in action will melt even a heart of stone.