Raleigh nonprofit working to help Ukrainian orphanages amidst war

A Raleigh man who's helped orphans in Ukraine for decades is working around the clock to get support and supplies to them now that their country is at war with Russia.

The non-profit, New Life Ministries, hosts camps and programs at orphanages in the Chernihiv region, an area that borders Russia.

Greg Gulley, director of the ministry, said he has been able to transfer money to staff members who've had to escape to western Ukraine.

Gulley manages the ministry from his bedroom converted into an office. Mementos from his travels line the shelves - along a photo of Gulley and the orphans he met in eastern Europe the late 1990s.

Want to help Ukraine? Here's a list of charitable organizations to support

"We're just treating them, as they should be treated — as human beings that are valued, loved and all are special," he said.

Gully said that two months ago, he took some of the orphans on an ice skating outing and pizza party to celebrate the Christmas season. Now, those same orphanages are struggling to keep children fed.

"It's horrific," he said, of the war. "I've never imagined or seen anything like this."

Gully said his ministry sent medicine to one orphanage and meat to another.

Sveta Baranova, a New Life Ministries staff member that works in Ukraine, said she's worried about not having enough food and fuel in the days to come.

"One of the orphanages, for example, needs fuel and we were able to get money for them for fuel but no one agrees to bring it to them," she said.

The reality of war set in during a WRAL News interview with Baranova, when an air raid siren cut the conversation short.

Gulley said he is using the encrypted messaging service, WhatsApp, because of fears that Russia is monitoring their communication.