Despite a year of hardship and uncertainty, Ukraine’s Jews prepare for Tishrei with 51,500 Yom Tov packages distributed in 169 cities and towns. Each package included Yom Tov essentials along with a newly translated children’s book in Ukrainian called It’s Time to Celebrate the New Year.

In the Jewish communities of Ukraine, a particularly difficult year is coming to a close, and prayers are being raised for quiet and peace.

The past year has been harsher than those before: according to reports, the number of Jewish soldiers who fell in battle was higher than in previous years. More and more Jewish institutions were hit by missiles, and the number of Jews drafted into the army rose as well – along with a growing concern for their lives.

At the same time, Ukraine lost American support, while Russian forces advanced significantly on the battlefield, fully repelling Ukraine’s “counter-offensive.” Their strikes on city centers became broader and deadlier.

Another major factor that hurt Ukraine’s Jewish communities was a steep drop in donations from world Jewry. Much of the funding was redirected to support the needs of Eretz Yisroel, leaving Ukrainian communities facing serious difficulties. Countless projects dedicated to both material and spiritual welfare were forced to shut down one after another.

Nevertheless, Jewish communities across Ukraine completed preparations last week to celebrate yet another cycle of Tishrei Yomim Tovim, the fourth since the war began, even as the fighting drags on with no end in sight.

The highlight of the preparations was the distribution of extensive Yom Tov packages to 51,500 Jews in 169 cities and towns throughout Ukraine. This massive logistical effort was coordinated by the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU) together with Chabad shluchim. The distribution network spanned from the embattled eastern regions – Donetsk, Lugansk, Kharkov, Kherson, and Zaporozhe – to Khust, Uzhhorod, and Munkacz in the far west, near the Polish and Slovakian borders.

Each package was filled with a wide variety of items: a special booklet explaining the halachos and minhagim of the four Tishrei holidays, a jar of honey, Shabbos and Yom Tov candles, a Hebrew–Ukrainian desk calendar, a matching wall calendar, yarmulkes, grape juice, sweets, a cosmetics set, and an elegant booklet highlighting the Federation’s activities with Ukraine’s Jews, including contact information for additional personal support.

The centerpiece of the package was a newly translated children’s book in Ukrainian: It’s Time to Celebrate the New Year, originally written in English by author Rachel Groner Forest. The book offers families an engaging reading experience, conveying the joy of the Yomim Tovim and their ancient traditions to the younger generation. “This way, we are helping transmit the mesora to the next generation,” the Federation proudly noted.

Another major focus, in partnership with Chabad shluchim, was ensuring as many regular tefillah gatherings as possible, both in large cities and in smaller towns that lack an active rav or functioning shul.

Rabbi Meir Stambler, head shliach and chairman of Ukraine’s Jewish communities, remarked: “The plea ‘Avinu Malkeinu, remove pestilence, sword, famine, captivity, and destruction’ that we say during the Yomim Noraim carries a chillingly real meaning again this year. After such a difficult year, tens of thousands of Jewish families in Ukraine will celebrate the new year. Along with the joy of Yom Tov, they will daven to the Eibershter to put an end to our tzaros and to hasten the true and complete Geula.” He added: “The very intensification of darkness is itself a sign that we are even closer to the Geula. When the night grows darker, it means dawn is near.”