It’s been over four years since a massive escalation of the war between Russia and Ukraine—meaning 1,500 days of violence and uncertainty. Amid the turmoil, Billy Graham Rapid Response Team (BG-RRT) chaplains have been there, combatting hopelessness and despair with God’s love and peace.
Though crisis-trained chaplains have provided emotional and spiritual support in Kyiv for a few years now, they recently added to their ministry: handing people a slice of encouragement—literally.
Through a new outreach, the team has served more than 8,780 pizzas, reaching over 12,670 people.
“What may sound like a simple act of feeding people has proven to be something far greater: a living testimony of God’s love,” said Vitaliy Tkachuk, a chaplain coordinator. The outreach has also provided valuable ministry connections with hospitals, social centres, and military facilities, opening more doors to prayer and Gospel conversations.
The generosity of a simple hot meal has moved many Ukrainians. One service member told Tkachuk that at the beginning of the conflict, “volunteers were everywhere—you could meet them on almost every corner.”
The news cycle has since moved on to the next tragedy, but BG-RRT chaplains are still meeting people in their brokenness and offering a listening ear for the suffering they’ve endured.
In addition to meeting a physical need, the pizza gives people the chance to experience normalcy and togetherness.
“It brings joy, openness, and even a sense of celebration,” Tkachuk said. “People came up on their own and said that accepting this kind of help felt easy—without any inner barrier. People stayed not only for the food—they stayed to talk, to ask questions, to share their pain.”
Chaplains have even witnessed a few elderly residents trying pizza for the first time. Others had forgotten what it tastes like.
With one slice after another, chaplains have also seen lives changed by the Gospel.
