KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The recent incursion into Russia's Kursk region puts a new spotlight on Ukraine, but the attention of aid groups and volunteers helping through the war never wavered.
In fact, one Kansas City woman just got back from her second trip to Ukraine.
Cath Glennon describes the ongoing need for medical aid.
"There's still such a great need over there," she said. "For instance, a lack of electricity. Dark streets, no streetlights. No elevators; you're seeing people that are trying to maintain some semblance of a normal life, but yet they are unable to do that. You feel the tension or the stress of the war going on when we're over there. But at the same time, you feel the resiliency of the people."
As time has gone, so too has much of the aid sent by the US and other countries.
Global Care Force, who Glennon volunteered with, goes back regularly to keep filling the void of care.
Since many of the adults in Ukraine are fighting, Glennon saw mostly children and the elderly.
“We would start early in the day and we would stay until the last patient was seen. A lot of high blood pressure, diabetes, injuries," she said. “The patients have a lot of PTSD. They were very stressed about it all. They have a lot of injuries because of the destruction. You know, roofs falling on them and breaking bones or injuring them."
Above all, Glennon remembers how grateful the people she cared for were.
“It’s such a stark environment when you look at the destruction around them, and yet they’re so resilient and cheerful," she said. "They just express gratitude to the point of tears. They were so grateful, they used the words, that the United States hasn't forgotten; I hope we don’t forget about them."
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