Oleh and Marianna see themselves as missionaries to bring the gospel, in Scripture stories, to hundreds of other Deaf Ukrainians who have fled the conflict in their home country at this time.
They are also refugees but adamantly disagree about being “displaced.” They say they felt led to settle in the Czech Republic and know God led them there to share Christ with other Deaf Ukrainians. They signed, “We are not displaced! We are placed here by God for a purpose. We did not know all of the details as to what was ahead for us, but we knew He led us here!!”
Partnering with this ministry will enable Oleh and Marianna to craft Bible stories into USL and record and compile them for distribution. So give today to create the first-ever Bible translation in USL to ministry to the thousands of war-weary Deaf Ukrainians searching for hope and meaning in life!
Obeying God’s Call. Oleh and Marianna heard the gospel as teenagers because believers like you reached out to them through evangelistic camps provided by a Deaf Baptist church from Houston, Texas. Later they married and obeyed God’s call into ministry. They served in an interpreted ministry among the Baptists in Ukraine—until war broke out.
Oleh and Marianna were forced to flee Ukraine in March 2022. After seeking the Lord’s direction for a place to “land and serve,” they settled in a nearby Eastern European country and began working with a Deaf church there. They began strategizing with our team to plant churches among the hundreds of Deaf Ukrainian refugees living in several cities here. In addition, we developed a plan to translate Scripture into USL.
Reaching Deaf People. This couple has accelerated the USL Bible translation project and helped train leaders across Eastern Europe in church planting strategies among Deaf peoples. Our team’s emphasis on Bible translation meshes with efforts that use the newly translated Scriptures to lead Deaf Ukrainian refugees to faith, disciple them, and connect them to local Deaf churches. As Oleh and Marianna continue to work on Scripture translation and evangelize Deaf Ukrainian refugees living here, they are also sharing the gospel with local Deaf people with the intent to start new churches in some of the cities with many Deaf but no church.
Thank you so much for your kindness, generosity, and partnership! Your prayer and gifts are truly making a difference through this project! Please prayerfully consider making another gift to support this ministry in 2023 so our team can continue translating the Bible into USL and sharing the stories among the Deaf who live in Eastern Europe. 
Deaf and hard-of-hearing peoples live in an invisible world of stereotypes. More than 200 distinct sign languages have common roots that enable the Deaf to communicate cross-culturally, but most in the approximately 70-million-person global Deaf community have never seen Jesus's name signed. Often ignored and oppressed, the Deaf are some of the least evangelized people on earth.
Deaf communities comprise nearly one percent of any urban center. Though on the surface they are often indistinguishable from the hearing population, their differences in language and culture often result in their oppression. They find more common ground with other Deaf people—even those from other cultures. Across cultures, the Deaf share one great need: They need Jesus.
The gospel is for all people, and the Great Commission is for every believer, both hearing and Deaf. Ask God to raise up Deaf and hearing believers to embrace the limitless opportunities to take the gospel to Deaf communities.