Yulia Clack
Light for Ukraine, Ukraine/U.S.A.
If you told 21-year-old Yulia, fresh off the plane from Ukraine in 2014, that her last-minute practicum choice (now degree choice) at Highlands College would one day connect to her church planting near the front lines of a full-scale war in her home country… she would have laughed. Read from Yulia’s perspective what ministry in the local church looks like within the battlefields of Ukraine.
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“In 2014, Russia had just occupied part of Ukraine. I was figuring out life in a new place, speaking a new language, and feeling the pressure to know my calling, my practicum, and my plan. Highlands College was God’s way of putting me in the right place at the right time, even though I didn’t realize it then. I switched my practicum at the last minute to church planting. I wasn’t a church planter, but I felt led. Almost 10 years later, I’m working with church planters in Ukraine. The very thing I didn’t fully understand then, is exactly where God has placed me now.
I’m the Development Director of Light for Ukraine, a nonprofit that partners with pastors planting churches in Ukraine. My role is connecting people here in the U.S. with what God is doing there—telling the stories, raising awareness, and building partnerships so pastors have what they need to keep going.
After graduating Highlands College, I moved back to Ukraine for a few years. During that time, my brother and I opened Sibs Coffee, and I joined my parents’ media ministry. Our coffee shops became essential community hubs—bomb shelters, aid distribution points, and places where people could find comfort and help.
I also didn’t know that my parents’ media work would one day save lives on the front lines. Last year, they recorded the first Ukrainian audio Bible on solar-powered devices—designed so soldiers could hear God’s Word even in the trenches.
We’ve delivered over 25,000 audio Bibles to the front lines, over 100 tons of humanitarian aid, and 1,800 Christmas backpacks for displaced children of fallen soldiers.
When the war started in 2022, my family was in Ukraine and I was back in the U.S., desperate to help. I didn’t have much, but I told God, ‘I’ll use my voice. That’s what I have.’ I started speaking up, telling people what was really happening in my country.
Out of that came unexpected connections and open doors.
People I’d met years earlier were suddenly part of getting supplies into Ukraine. One of those connections was Light for Ukraine. Suddenly, my impromptu practicum choice years ago didn’t feel random anymore.
Since the full-scale war began, more than 500 churches have been damaged or destroyed. And yet, new churches are still opening. In war, the Church takes on a whole new meaning. It’s been incredible to witness it.
We’ve seen the kind of growth you can only explain as God’s work.
Yulia and her husband ship supplies to Ukraine.
Even while some churches have been destroyed, more have been planted by Light for Ukraine. The need for hope is greater than the risk. I’m also planning a trip to Ukraine in a few weeks to meet with pastors and see firsthand what God is doing in their communities.
Highlands College taught me to lead from faith, not fear. It gave me the courage to say ’yes’ in seasons of uncertainty.
The most impactful lesson I carry with me today is to be faithful with what’s in your hand. In 2022, that was my voice. We lived in a small apartment. I asked for help, and thousands of Amazon packages showed up.
No shipping company was delivering to Ukraine, so we announced at church that we needed suitcases. The next day, almost 50 appeared. We packed them all—47 went to Ukraine with my husband and two friends, who crossed the border and met my brother. It was the first delivery of supplies to my hometown since the war began.
That one step turned into a full-scale processing center for aid. If you’re faithful with what you have, God will use it in ways you can’t imagine.
My view of the global and local church evolved since graduating, because now I’ve seen the church as a lifeline. In Ukraine, ‘church’ can be a building with blown-out windows, 12 miles from the front lines, where people still gather the next Sunday. The local church is where hope is planted and the global church makes sure that hope keeps growing.
Calling doesn’t always feel glamorous. It’s the long game of trusting God when you have no idea how it’s going to turn out. But despite it all—it’s mine. And it’s worth it.
For graduates stepping into the unknown or students preparing to graduate, you don’t have to know your calling right now. Be curious. Be all in. Stay open. God’s timing is often unexpected, but it’s always right.”
Connect with Yulia on the Highlands College Alumni Network.
Yulia brings humanitarian aid to towns on the front lines of the war.
Yulia and her brother in their coffeeshop, Sibs, which became an essential community hub as a bomb shelter, aid distribution point, and place where people could find comfort and help.
A reality for the people of Kyiv, Ukraine in the aftermath of the occupation.
Yulia stands with an internally displaced family.