MINISTRY OF THE CHARITABLE ORGANISATION "CHARITABLE FOUNDATION ODIGITRIA"
My name is Archpriest Dmytrii Krasnobaiev. I am the rector of the Holy Protection Church in Odesa, the representative of the Odesa Eparchy of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine for pastoral care in places of detention, and the director of the Charitable Organisation "Charitable Foundation Odigitria".
I have worked with people in places of detention since 2012. The organisation was officially registered in July 2015. Our ministry covers the whole of Ukraine.
By order of the Khadzhybei District Prosecutor's Office in Odesa, I sit on the standing interagency working group on penal institutions.
AREAS OF WORK
- Humanitarian aid to penal colonies and pre-trial detention centres. We deliver food, medicines, hygiene products, clothing, footwear, bedding and stationery.
- A direct line of contact. A detained person from any region can reach me by finding the organisation's contacts online and receive real, practical help.
- Pastoral care. Conversations and counselling by phone and correspondence; Bibles, spiritual literature, icons, candles.
- Church services in places of detention. I celebrate the Liturgy, hear confession, give communion and baptise (currently suspended because of the war in Ukraine).
- Help in overcoming alcohol and drug dependency. I accompany and counsel dependent people and their families; I have been doing this for more than 13 years. The great majority of those in my care are dependent on psychoactive substances. This is long work — no less than three years of daily support.
- Children and families of detainees. School backpacks and supplies, clothing, footwear, food, and support throughout the school year.
- Restoring family links. We search for relatives in Ukraine and abroad, always with the consent of both sides.
- Support after release. Restoring lost identity documents, tickets home, and support through the first months of freedom.
- "Psychology of Choice". An educational rehabilitation programme run inside institutions: tablets loaded with digital educational content. A pilot with 50 participants.
- Ministry in medical institutions. A military hospital, a tuberculosis hospital, a hospice, a psychiatric hospital, and city hospitals.
WHAT HAS BEEN DONE
Over the years of this ministry:
— more than 1,000 deliveries of aid to places of detention
— more than 300 deliveries to people in need outside places of detention
— more than 800 days of church services in penal colonies and detention centres, and more than 225 days in medical institutions
— more than 100 cases in which contact with relatives was restored, including relatives abroad
— in the field of dependency, a rehabilitation centre and a social adaptation centre operated from 2013 to 2022
In the past year, more than 150 parcels. In 2025, 70 families received school backpacks.
These are minimum figures: aid handed over during church services was not recorded separately.
EXPERIENCE OF PARTNERSHIP
Our project for families of detainees, "While Dad Is Away", was supported by the German church organisation Bread for the World (Diakonia) and completed with a financial report submitted.
A SEPARATE AREA (OUTSIDE THE PRISON MINISTRY)
"Pokrova Peremohy" — a volunteer workshop making camouflage netting for units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, since 2023.
CONTACTS
Archpriest Dmytrii Krasnobaiev
Director, Charitable Foundation "Odigitria"
Phone / WhatsApp: +38 067 485 53 33 |
