Caring for seniors, families and children in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine since 2002
Through the Mennonite Family Centre in Zaporizhzhya, a local team provides home care, respite care and practical support for vulnerable seniors, displaced families and children with special needs. The Mennonite Benevolent Society, incorporated in Manitoba in 1945, has supported this work since 2002.
Serving vulnerable people since 1945 · A registered Canadian charity
CRA Registration No. 11924-0001 Canada
— The work, in numbers
Program statistics as of April 2026
- ~160
- Home care clients yearly across Zaporizhzhya
- up to4,000
- Care hours delivered each month
- 29
- Local workforce in Zaporizhzhya
- 6
- Respite beds at the Mennonite Family Centre
- 81
- Years of unbroken charitable work
— Our Work
Programs and partnerships, all through one Mennonite Family Centre
The Mennonite Family Centre in Zaporizhzhya runs three primary programs in the city — Home Care, Respite Care, and the Day Program — and supports two community partnerships for children with special needs: the Prometheus learning centre and the Florence Centre. Its outreach to seniors in the village of Katusovka has not been possible since the region was occupied in 2022.
Explore every program
Home Care
Trained caregivers visit seniors in their homes — bathing, cooking, medication, conversation. Many of our clients haven't left their apartment in years.
Respite Care
Once meant for short respite, this program has become long-term care for those who need care but have no home to return to.
Day Program
Tea, singing, Bible study, a hot meal, and social time — one full day a week at the Centre for up to eight seniors, with pickup and drop-off by the Centre van.
This program was suspended at the onset of the war for safety concerns.
Prometheus
A learning centre for children with special needs — children not accepted in public schools. Run from a former public school, with professional staff and dedicated volunteers.
Florence Centre
A non-governmental agency founded by Otto and Florence Driedger with Ukrainian social work faculty. Its Kangaroo Program is a day-care for children with special needs.
From the Beacon of Hope · Issue 47
“More and more clients are arriving from the occupied regions, leaving everything behind”
From the latest Beacon of Hope newsletter: “Younger families and seniors are still arriving from the villages or towns as the front line of the war approaches. Many are reluctant to leave their home, but as a last resort they come leaving everything behind.”
— Stay close to the work
Subscribe to the Beacon of Hope
The Mennonite Family Centre's newsletter is published twice a year, in summer and winter. We will email you each new issue.
— Make a gift
Donate to the work in Ukraine
Your gift supports the programs of the Mennonite Family Centre in Ukraine.
Give through CanadaHelpsSecure giving via CanadaHelps · Tax receipt issued automatically
— In Canada
Rooted in Manitoba since 1945
MBS was founded to establish Bethania, a home for the aged and infirm. Over the years, the Society's donations have also supported education, health care and other charities in Canada. In 1981, the Winnipeg Mennonite Elementary School opened with seed money that flowed through MBS. The Society can continue to support Canadian causes when a gift is designated for them.
Read the historyAcute care · Since 1928
Concordia Hospital
Established in 1928 by the Mennonite Hospital Society Concordia, whose leaders went on to found MBS. Its board is elected by the same membership as MBS.
Personal care homes and seniors' housing
Bethania Group
MBS was founded in 1945 to establish Bethania. Today the Bethania Group operates Bethania Mennonite PCH, Pembina Place Mennonite PCH, ArlingtonHaus, BethaniaHaus and Kingsford Haus. Its board is elected by the same membership as MBS.
You can also give through MBS. The Society can receive gifts on behalf of Concordia Hospital and Bethania when you designate them.
How to designate a gift— Get involved
Become part of the Society
MBS is an association of about 400 members. Members elect the boards of MBS, Concordia Hospital and Bethania, and can stand for election to them.
Membership
Lifetime membership · $50
A one-time fee. Applications are invited from anyone with current membership in a Mennonite Church congregation who is supportive of the Society's Statement of Purpose.
The board
Serve on the board
Board members are elected by the membership at annual meetings and must be members of the Society in good standing. If you would like to be considered, please contact the office.
The Mennonite Benevolent Society is an association of persons committed to the nurture and expression of their Christian faith by responding to the health needs of acute and long term care clients in a broad continuum of sites and services.