“One of the great things about being a Knight,” reflected Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William Lori during his pastoral visit to Ukraine in October 2024, “is that you know a Knight on the other side of the world is supporting you by his prayers [and] in a common sense of mission.”
This deep sense of unity and fraternity, together with charity, permeates every initiative undertaken by the Knights of Columbus to help suffering people in war-torn Ukraine, including the roughly 3,000 Ukrainian Knights and their families who hold onto the hope that their life and livelihood can be rebuilt.
The first Knights in Ukraine joined the Order in the spring of 2012, nearly two years before Russia invaded the Crimean Peninsula and a decade before Russia’s full-scale invasion Feb. 24, 2022. Among the first members were Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv-Halyč, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and Archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki of Lviv, head of the Latin-rite community in Ukraine.
“We started with the first councils in Lviv and in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, right before the Revolution of Dignity started, right before the war knocked on our door,” noted Archbishop Shevchuk in an August 2018 interview, following the designation of Ukraine as a state council. “I think because of that very vibrant presence of the Knights of Columbus in our country, we were prepared by divine providence.”
Indeed, within 36 hours of the 2022 invasion, the Supreme Council committed $1 million of immediate aid and established the Ukraine Solidarity Fund, even as K of C councils in Poland mobilized to welcome refugees and deliver aid to their eastern neighbors. In the following days and weeks, K of C Mercy Centers were established at the Poland-Ukraine border where fleeing refugees could find food, warmth and medical care. This initiative eventually evolved into parish-based Mercy Centers, organized by the local councils in both countries.
Since the immediate aftermath of the invasion, Knights in Poland have been untiring in their on-the-ground charitable efforts, establishing an infrastructure of support for refugees — primarily women and children — and welcoming them into their communities, sometimes their own homes. Through K of C Charity Convoys, Polish Knights provide critical assistance in getting supplies to Ukraine, while Ukrainian Knights, whose numbers have grown more than 50% during the past three years, facilitate the distribution of aid to areas in most need.
At the same time, brother Knights around the world continue to stand with and pray for those suffering. In all, the Ukraine Solidarity Fund has generated more than $24 million toward humanitarian relief. With the aid of partnerships and Knights on the ground, millions of pounds of food and supplies have been delivered, and numerous creative initiatives have provided material, spiritual and psychological support to widows, orphans and others in need.
Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly visited Poland and Ukraine just six weeks after the Russian invasion, during Holy Week in April 2022. He returned during Advent, again delivering support and a message of hope and emphasized the Order’s solidarity during this time of need.
“What you are doing here really exemplifies the kind of courage that Father McGivney had when he founded the Knights in order to serve his parishioners who needed help,” Supreme Knight Kelly told Ukrainian Knights during his initial visit.
During his December 2022 trip, the supreme knight expressed a sentiment he has reiterated several times since. “You are not alone,” he told the Knights in Ukraine. “Your brothers are praying for you, continuing to donate resources for your work. You are writing the next chapter in the history of the Knights of Columbus — and you are sending a message to the Church and the world.”
To learn more, visit kofc.org/ukraine.