Knights assist Albertine Brothers with providing food and faith on Ukraine’s frontlines
In Zaporizhzhia, a city on the banks of the Dnieper River near Ukraine’s active front lines, fear is a constant presence. Air raid alarms call people to take shelter up to 10 times a day, and explosions rock the city almost every week. Yet amid the devastation, signs of compassion and courage are equally present, thanks in large part to the collaborative efforts of the local Knights and the Albertine Brothers who are serving displaced people and others devastated by the war.
For over two decades, the Albertines have served the poorest of the poor in Zaporizhzhia — a mission now strengthened by the Order’s Ukraine Solidarity Fund. The Albertine mission in the city began in 2002 with the brothers serving hot soup to people in need. The religious order’s outreach steadily grew over the years, culminating in the establishment of a shelter for the homeless, the House of Hope, in 2008. Today the Albertines are a beacon of support for the entire community, distributing food to about 1,300 people four times a week.
The most recent transport of food products funded by the Ukraine Solidarity Fund arrived on a special day for the Albertines: the feast of St. Albert Chmielowski on June 17. For Brother Franciszek Grzelka, the congregation’s superior in Kraków, Poland, the timing was no accident. “We accept this as a gift, in which we hope Brother Albert also had a part from heaven,” he said.
A Small Congregation With a Big Mission
The four Albertine brothers who serve in Zaporizhzhia focus on providing essential sustenance to those in need, baking thousands of loaves of bread each week for the homeless and many others who have lost their jobs and livelihoods in the war. They also distribute canned goods, dry rations and basic supplies.
Brother Maksymilian Shmihelskyi, who leads the Albertine charitable work in Zaporizhzhia, noted how he and his brothers root their service in faith. “In one year, around 40 people who came for soup were baptized,” he said. “We give our witness through love and service. And if someone wants to talk, we are there.”
Since the outbreak of war, the queues of people waiting for food have grown tenfold. Because large gatherings can be targeted, food distributions must take place quickly. In peacetime, the kitchen served hot meals to 150-200 people, but they soon switched to prepackaged food for ease of distribution.
As the war escalated, so did support from the Knights of Columbus. In 2022, the Supreme Council donated two generators to the Albertines — one for use in Lviv and the other in Zaporizhzhia.
“Back when the electricity was cut every day, it allowed us to keep baking bread,” said Brother Shmihelskyi. “Thanks to this help, we never stopped serving the poor.”
The Knights also funded a well — ensuring water access locally and in nearby Nikopol, a city left without water for nearly six months — and donated canned goods from Poland, which the brothers continue to distribute. Additionally, Knights from Lviv sent a truckload of flour to support the Albertines’ bakery.
Although there are only 33 Albertine brothers worldwide, the congregation has an outsized impact, said Brother Grzelka. The brothers also receive support from nearly 500 Albertine sisters, spread across four houses in Poland and two in Ukraine, as well as volunteers from the local parish and residents of the House of Hope.
With financial help from the Knights of Columbus and other organizations, the Kraków Albertines organize monthly transports of 15 to 20 tons of food to Zaporizhzhia — an 808-mile journey. Each shipment includes 33 pallets of food and the cost of transportation alone is around $3,000.
“It’s very close to the actual military operations, so it’s almost always a Ukrainian carrier,” said Brother Grzelka. “I drive with the congregation’s treasurer in a small truck. We bring some food, but also brothers for a rotation, so those there can get a reset from the war alarms.”
‘To Be There in the First Minutes’
The Knights of Columbus councils in Zaporizhzhia — Roman Catholic God the Merciful Father Council 16460 and Greek Catholic St. Volodymyr Council 18319 — aid the Albertines’ efforts by distributing food packages and assisting displaced persons seeking shelter in the city.
“Although in Zaporizhzhia there are air raid alerts — more time with alerts than without them — this does not prevent the Knights from providing extraordinary help to our people,” said District Deputy Vasyl Hladiy of Council 18319.
“If, God forbid, there are any incoming strikes, the Knights of Columbus are also there in the first minutes and provide assistance to those most in need,” Hladiy said, adding that Knights have also helped clear rubble after attacks.
The renewed partnership builds on past joint efforts. The Knights previously assisted the Albertines with tasks like delivering food to the homebound, but the scale of need has since grown exponentially.
“Today there are more vulnerable people, especially displaced persons, pensioners and large families, who are on the brink of survival,” said Hladiy. In response, local Knights — who independently provide daily aid to about 100 people in addition to working with the Caritas Foundation — rejoined forces with the Albertines in June.
Hladiy stressed the profound impact of this simple aid: “For us, providing bread and a can of food might seem like a small thing, but for a person on the verge of survival who receives this it is a very big help.”
Brother Shmihelskyi cast the Albertines’ actions in a wider context. “Ukraine is not only fighting for itself, for its homes and families. It is defending Europe and the world,” he said.
For the Knights on the ground, the international support is a powerful source of strength, Hladiy added. “Their support is true solidarity. It gives us the hope to keep going,” he concluded.
To learn more about our work in Ukraine and to support those efforts, visit kofc.org/ukraine.