Vasiliy Stupin, a former refugee from the Soviet Union and a member of Good Works Washington, a Tacoma-based organization functioning as a thrift shop and food bank, is offering hope and assistance to refugees, and people are finding the love of Jesus and hope! He shares with Erica his personal link to the cause and its impact on refugees. With the aid of approximately 40 volunteers, Good Works Washington serves over 30,000 meals each month to those in need.
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TRANSCRIPTION:
Erica:
It is our privilege to shine the spotlight on those who are making a difference in the PNW. And today we’ve got a difference maker from Tacoma, Vasiliy Stupin from Good Works Washington is with us. Welcome to the show. So glad you could be here on SPIRIT 105.3. How are you?
Vasiliy Stupin:
Hello, Erica. I’m doing great. Thank you for having me. Oh,
Erica:
It’s such a joy to connect with you. I love that you all are a thrift shop, you’re a food bank, but my favorite part of who you are is that Good Works is a place where people are finding the love of Jesus and finding hope. It’s a place of hope, isn’t it?
Vasiliy Stupin:
It is. My background is that I came over from the former Soviet Union as a refugee in 1992, and when our family immigrated, we had a couple of suitcases and $200 in cash per person. And so, when we’re seeing similar things happening today, it is something that’s near and dear to my heart and to the heart of the people at the church where we started this ministry. As you know, there’s been an escalation of war in Ukraine. Two weeks ago we had a two year anniversary of that, with over 6 million Ukrainians being displaced internationally. And what we’re seeing is just a wave of Ukrainian refugees coming over and some of them have absolutely no resources, no funds. And so, we started a food bank shortly before the war as a community ministry, and it really just expanded and blew up. And we focus on Slavic refugees.
Initially it was primarily Ukrainian refugees running away from the war. And recently we’re seeing there has been a wave of the Russian refugees actually, running away from the mobilization and the mandatory military service when they get sent to Ukraine to fight. So, we are doing what we can through Good Works Ministries, and we have two primary ways to do that. One is our food bank operation. We give out over 30,000 meals per month where we focus on those who have gotten into this country over the past couple of years and they have very limited resources or receive some sort of public assistance. And so, we have about 40 volunteers that stand in line with collected, donated food from different warehouses, different grocery stores, distribution centers. And as we collect it and store it and sort it, people show up, we give ’em a number, they wait in the lobby of our church and then they go through this line and pick out the culturally appropriate foods that work for them. And so, it’s a big operation. It’s been a big blessing. I’m sorry, go ahead.
Erica:
Oh, I was going to say Vasiliy, how does someone who’s lost everything react when they walk in and all of a sudden a volunteer is there putting groceries in their arms and smiling at them?
Vasiliy Stupin:
It is so encouraging to hear some of those responses. Some people, they can’t believe that we have no financial interest in helping them. They’re wondering what’s the catch? What’s in it for us? And we’re just pointing people to Jesus. And one story that happened, I think about a month ago is we’ve offered more food to this lady. And she said, no, I can’t take anymore. I only have one pot to make this in. I mean, that’s how poor these people are just coming over. They’ve lost everything. Their houses got bombed. Everything’s destroyed. They’ve lost all of their possessions.
Erica:
Do you find yourself making friends and connecting with these amazing people?
Vasiliy Stupin:
We do. Some of them come and visit one of our church services. What makes this ministry unique is we actually have three services that we run at our church in Russian and Ukrainian and in English. And so, there is a home for everyone. Some of ’em join home groups, some of ’em just need pastoral care and counseling. There is a lot of mental health follow up that’s needed, because of the crazy things that they have experienced. And so yes, there is a lot of connection. I think it is, especially at this stage of their new life in the United States, whether temporary or permanent, they really need that connection with people who are praying for them and supporting them.
Erica:
And how do you see Jesus working at Good Works? Because I bet his presence is all over that place.
Vasiliy Stupin:
We can share so many stories about how that has worked. And we’ve taken a passage from Ephesians two that states that we work created for good works. And so, every single thing we do, we just point people to Jesus. We tell ’em we do it in Jesus name and for His glory. And we actually have people who were baptized as a result of coming and visiting our food bank and thrift store, and now they’ve committed their life to Christ, which is super, super encouraging.
Erica:
Vasiliy, do you feel like you are paying forward the blessings that you received when you came to America?
Vasiliy Stupin:
Absolutely. There has been a lot of people who have invested into us and invested into the kingdom. And this is a privilege and an honor for us to do the same for the people who are in need. And so, it is a privilege and we really see God working through many different ways and many different volunteers and sponsors and all the different circumstances that have been happening over the past couple of years. So, it is an honor to be part of what God is doing every day.
Erica:
It’s an honor to hear about it. You said you have about 40 volunteers. What is it like from their perspective? I imagine it’s so rewarding.
Vasiliy Stupin:
It is. They literally take time off work and they show up and they sort food. We have a team that goes in the middle of the night, we purchase the truck and they go and they pick up food donations for all these different warehouses in the middle of the night. And some of ’em run businesses. Some of ’em have regular jobs throughout the day. And so, to see the sacrifice that our volunteers are making in Jesus’ name is just absolutely incredible.
Erica:
Oh, well, Vasiliy, thank you so much for taking time to talk with us today and keep us posted on everything that Jesus is up to at Good Works.
Vasiliy Stupin:
Absolutely. And we just would ask for your prayers. We really need prayers.
Erica:
Oh, thank you so much for your time. Keep in touch my friend.
Vasiliy Stupin:
Alright, God bless. Thank you. You too.
Erica:
I love him.
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