'A Beacon Of Light': Lindenhurst Man Travels To Ukraine Orphanage

LINDENHURST, NY — When war broke out in Ukraine this spring, Tom Kropp immediately booked a ticket to Poland.

The Lindenhurst resident, whose wife Olena is from Ukraine, had visited the war-torn country almost 25 times since 2001, to help charitable causes.

He deemed Poland the best place to go to see firsthand how the war affected people.

"I said, 'Let me find out what the need is'," he said.

With the help of a Ukrainian friend who lived in Poland to translate, Kropp visited two refugee centers, a food pantry and rescue center.

With every visit, he asked people what they needed. If it was food, he bought bags of groceries from the nearest supermarket. If it were clothes, he returned with that, too.

When he learned the rescue center housed 22 children and 16 mothers, he bought Easter candies and baskets for each family.

"One of my good friends used to tell me, don't talk about it, just lead by example," he said.

Not long after returning to the United States, his friend told Kropp the refugee centers were no longer needed and closed.

His reaction to this, was his next mode of action.

"Okay," he said. "Now how am I going to get into Ukraine?"

Kropp then approached Father Olvian Popovic at Holy Family Ukrainian Church, to plan a trip to Ukraine and help children affected by the war.

Holy Family, located in Lindenhurst's Ukrainian community, created its own fundraiser and item collection to help those affected.

Many Ukrainians moved to Lindenhurst during the first few months of the war, including Kropp's sister-in-law Ira, and niece Sasha, who are originally from Lugunsk, to the United States in April.

Originally from the city of Lugansk, they fled to Poland when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014.

"Their whole life was there," Kropp said. "Now they are transplanted here and trying to adjust."

So from Nov. 27 to Dec. 2, the two, along with Richard Sumski, another Moose Lodge member, stayed in Lviv, a western city near the Polish border, to visit and help House of Mercy orphanage for children with special needs.

Kropp, president of the Kiwanis Club of Lindenhurst and member of Lindenhurst Moose Lodge 1421, said that through his organizations, he helped raise more than $5,000 to support the orphanage. The Lindenhurst Chamber of Commerce also contributed to the cause.

The three paid their airfare out of their own pockets.

"I was totally overwhelmed by the support that the Kiwanis Club gave, that they had this much respect and faith in me to carry out this mission," he said. "There was so much love, and so many people saying, 'Tom, we're behind you.'"

Once the trio arrived in Ukraine, Kropp said he didn't see much of the city other than the area they stayed in.

But from his previous experience, some things were different.

The people also seemed on edge, he said. He attended a military funeral.

"The whole town comes out for it," he said. "Since the war, he (a Ukrainian priest) has been officiating a couple of funerals a week. He's buried over 1,000 people already."

Also, electricity was sparse, and alternated between different streets every few days. His hotel room also did not have electricity some nights.

"One night, I saw that one side (of the street) was on, and we were dark," he said.

Due to the lack of electricity, Kropp said the orphanage — as well as many others — was in desperate need of heaters. With the money they raised, the group went to what he called the "Home Depot" of Ukraine, and bought the last two remaining wood-burning heaters for the orphanage.

"At 9 a.m., they had 10 of these heaters," he said. "When we got there, only two were left."

They gave money for the orphanage to buy more heaters in the future, as well as bought dozens of boxes worth of food and candy for the children.

"It was just a great experience to help these kids," said Kropp. "I always tell everybody, kids are the victims. They're the biggest victims of anything that goes on."

They also gave each of the children "Tommy Mooses", or moose-teddy bears given to children in times of trauma, such as a fire or a police investigation, to ease their minds. Tommy Mooses are sponsored by Moose Lodge.

Although Kropp does not speak Ukrainian, joy needed no translation when the kids received their toy.

"That was beautiful to see their faces," he said. "I felt like I was part of a solution. I was able to bring a beacon of light from America to these people. It gave them a little more hope. To say, hold on, that we were behind you."