May 23, 2023 - From an article from the Slavic Gospel Association (SGA)
"A Seminary's Books Are Like Gold
At SGA-supported Irpen Biblical Seminary (IBS) in Ukraine, volunteers are taking the time to wipe down every book before returning them to the library.
After the assault on the seminary’s buildings last year at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, it was said by all that the greatest concern after making sure all people were safe was the books. There are copies of titles that are believed to be irreplaceable. The images below show dear sisters taking the time to care for books that were removed from shelves while the seminary was rebuilt from destruction."
The reason we are sharing this with you, you wonder? There are two stories happening here.
The first is, and we would agree, that these theological resources at IBS are precious.
The second is the joy of seeing a Kyiv Regional Bible College alumna - the fruit of READ's mission and focus on Theological Famine Relief by equipping church and ministry leaders in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
In the first photo below, is Alyona (in purple) smiling brightly at the camera. READ's librarian training partners at Kyiv Regional Bible College (KRBC) gave Alyona her start in librarianship many years ago. After the completion of her training at KRBC, Alyona became one of the librarians at Irpen Biblical Seminary (IBS) - and is now their chief librarian.
She also teaches the librarian-ministry-specific course at KRBC, located in Vyshneve, just outside of the city of Kyiv. READ helps to be supporting a new librarian training course in 2024 at KRBC.
Her name, derived from the Greek name Helen, in Russian means "a bright, shining light".
Alyona is living up to her name in more ways than one.
Her face portrays her soul! She is remarkable!
Seminary books are like gold, but so is a KRBC Alumna!
