The Town of Odyssey

We're on day 60 of the war in Ukraine. I no longer believe in Catholicism and just go to church sometimes to make my family happy. At church, the deacon said only God can bring peace. Well, he is certainly taking his time, in that case. Also, if he can bring peace, why did he allow the war in the first place? One fears for the thousands of Russians arrested. One feels terrible for the Ukrainians who are living in fear, and one feels for those who have lost loved ones. Thousands have died, including hundreds of children, Ukraine officials suggest the true figure is 15,000 Ukrainians dead as a result of the war. There's so little we can do, I feel helpless. However, here are some potential places to donate if you are able:

-Razom (emergency response)https://razomforukraine.org/
-The Kyiv Independent (news organization): https://www.gofundme.com/f/kyivindependent-launch
-World Cental Kitchen: https://wck.org/
-If you want to learn more about Ukraine I recommend Anton's videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqIF2U4g7H8&t=0s
-Support the Ukrainian army directly through the national bank of Ukraine: https://bank.gov.ua/en/about/support-the-armed-forces
-Ukrainian Military Support Fund: https://www.comebackalive.in.ua/donate
-Ohmatdyt Hospital: https://cutt.ly/ohmatdyt_help

Please post any charities or outreaches you recommend to help Ukrainians down below.

Hey Pound Foolish, thank you for starting this thread. I've thought about doing it and just never did. It's hard to find purpose in such a senseless war. I pray for peace and justice now, and eternal justice for those who don't get it in this lifetime. I will admit to some of those prayers being along the lines of, "Let these evildoers no longer have a chance to perpetuate more evil." I've donated a few places too, and those are Canadian-based charities so I'll only share links if fellow Canadians are interested.

What a truly terrible situation. I have been following it closely, both because it's an important situation with worldwide implications, and because I know someone from Ukraine whose parents are still residing there. I find myself staring in disbelief at my laptop screen on a nightly basis, wondering how things can be so bad and how long the horrors will last. I've read multiple articles that made me cry, and some stuff that I just couldn't bring myself to read because it was so horrific.

One interesting source of info/analysis that I follow is retired U.S. General Mark Hertling on Twitter. He has very helpful analysis based on decades of military experience, including many interactions with Russian and Ukraine military officials. He's on CNN a lot too. https://twitter.com/MarkHertling

Thank you too, Catspaw. I saw Rachel Maddow retweeted a story from USA Today, "A third mass grave has been found near the embattled Ukrainian city of Mariupol," the mayor says Russian occupiers forced residents to work on the burials. The trench, seen on satellite images, stretches more than 200 yards and contains thousands of civilian bodies. There are so many sad stories, but that's one I saw today.

According to Olga Tokariuk, "In the occupied Kherson region, Russians have created a prison camp on the territory of a pre-trial detention center where 300 Ukrainian activists and war veterans are being held. According to Ukraine's defense intelligence, people are interrogated, beaten and tortured there."

It's hard to think of that many mass graves, plus there are concerns that the mobile crematoriums that the Russians were toting around, many bodies will never be found. It must be so hard for people who are trying to find loved ones, unsure if they are alive or dead.