“Heart of a Warrior” — Four Days That Change Lives

From March 25 to 28, 2025, at the “Spring of Hope” Prayer Center in Oleksiivka, Vinnytsia region, we held a special restoration retreat for Ukrainian servicemen — the “Heart of a Warrior” program.

These were four days of silence, strength, tears, and laughter. Four days when warriors’ hearts began to return to peace.

The participants were veterans and active military members, many of whom recently returned from the frontlines. Our team of chaplains, a psychologist, an art therapist, and support staff created a safe and healing space where each man could breathe deeply, hear from God, begin healing, and regain direction.

The program included:

• spiritual sessions with reflection on Scripture;

• individual counseling with a professional psychologist;

• art therapy, where emotions found expression through creativity;

• honest, brotherly conversations by the fire;

• archery, fishing, and peaceful walks in the forest, allowing the body to reconnect with life;

• and of course, delicious home-cooked meals that brought warmth and comfort.

We witnessed how God works — through words, through silence, and through the simple things.
One of the participants shared:
“For the first time in a long while, I felt like I could just live. Without a weapon. Without body armor. Without fear.”

The program is organized by the Separate Unit of the First Ukrainian Battalion of Military Chaplains. We believe that when a warrior heals — a nation heals.