Above Photo: We departed Ivano-Frankovsk via “Windrose” airplane on Monday that took us to Kyiv where we changed plans and eventually arrived in Kherson around 10:00 pm!
Greetings from Kherson, Ukraine! This is a city where the Dniper River and the Black Sea are met. It is significant for commercial and recreational water enterprises. It is an old city and boasts of many significant events and people. It is a city steeped in Jewish history of Ukraine. I find it interesting that among the notable people connected with Kherson is “Salomon Rosenblum,” later known as Lieutenant Sidney Reilly, a secret agent and international adventurer and playboy who was at one time employed by the British Secret Intelligence Service. He is reputed to be the inspiration for Ian Fleming’s spy character, James Bond. Eventually he was arrested and executed in Russia. The city’s population is estimated to be between 196,000-189,000 and the Kherson Oblast is over one-million in population. We have been assisting this Region for a number of years. Since Russia invaded and continues to occupy portions of eastern Ukraine, many IDPs have come to Kherson.
An interesting note…When I looked to see the aircraft that would take us from Ivano-Frankivsk to Kyiv I was surprised to see a prop craft. In past years Ukraine would fly the Russian YAK aircraft for passenger transport. These load from the back and if you sit by the props you cannot hear anything. In previous times, after the plane had landed, passengers were not allowed to stand up until the pilots exited the aircraft. I was warned that if I saw the pilots running down the aisle then I’d better get off pronto! I have to admit that the first time I was a passenger and saw how everyone remained seated and then the pilots strutted down and out, I could not help but think they were abandoning the ship! The YAK also carried the important cargo in a hold just behind the pilots (you can see that in the above photo). I was also told that this was so if something terrible happened to the plan they could rescue the valuable cargo first. The refurbs are much nicer—the seat backs actually stay in place but leg room is 3-4 inches from the seat in front of you! The plane was totally full even though we were told we were “social distancing.”
It appears that the decentralization has allowed the local governments to be active in seeking how they can best help their Districts. As we were making the connection in Kyiv Tanya received a call from our Consignee in Kherson (Eugenia) saying the Mayor wanted to meet on Tuesday morning.
I find it amazing to see how the doors are opening for opportunities and exciting to be here to experience it!
Thank you for your interest, concerns and prayers!
John L. Kachelman, Jr. Kherson, Ukraine
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