The first outdoor festival, “Being Near” continues the spirit of our “Evening of Gratitude to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
Over 500 guests, a warm atmosphere, music, prayer, and heartfelt support — all in one place. Watch the full story in our video.
VIDEO SCRIPT
It’s almost our 15th event already. They used to be called evenings of gratitude to the armed forces. Now it’s called being there festival. The main goal is to support Ukrainians first and foremost, our soldiers and their families, to encourage them, and to lift their spirits. Being there is actually a chaplain’s motto. But we want Ukrainians to understand that it’s not only chaplain who should be there for the soldiers, but every Ukrainian should be there.
I believe that as a nation, we need to recognize this sense of gratitude and hold on to it every single day of life. It’s incredibly important. Events like this shouldn’t happen only here. They should be taking place in every city across Ukraine. People need to cultivate gratitude within themselves because in reality, the work that’s being done is vitally important and extremely dangerous. We thank God that he continues to protect our country, but at the same time, we’re deeply grateful to those who carry out this difficult work of defense.
I saw how they honored those who gave their lives, prayed for the prisoners, prayed for those who were missing, and prayed for those who are now defending our country. And even though they might never hear these prayers because they’re present with us, it’s so important for people to know that they’re not alone, that they haven’t been left to face everything on their own. For us, this is an incredible form of support. As they say, it means everything to us. Tremendous support. God is with us. Everything comes from God. God is with us. Because truly there is the everpresent question who remembers any miracle. The miracle is always there. Even now when you think about it the miracle is always there and it will continue. So thank God and thank you.
Recording Location
Kyiv
Organization featured in this Story
KJMC Kyiv
Reporter/Producer for the story
Elena Bereza
ES 
EN