Events
From Ukraine to Philly Streets
PHILADELPHIA — A Basilian sister from Ukraine is caring for some of Philadelphia’s most vulnerable populations, driven halfway across the globe by what one colleague calls her “restless love of the poor.”
“Whatever we have here, we give out,” Sister Teodora Kopyn told OSV News as she recently distributed boxes of groceries from one of the Philadelphia-area food pantries she operates.
A native of the ancient city of Mukachevo in western Ukraine’s Zakarpattia region, Sister Teodora arrived in the U.S. in 2013 to join her fellow Basilians at their Jesus, Lover of Humanity Province in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. Unlike many of the other visiting sisters who return to Ukraine after a period of service with the province, Sister Teodora remained in the U.S. — and rolled up her sleeves, determined to help as many Philadelphia-area residents as she could.
“Basilian Sister Teodora Kopyn is seen March 24, 2023, at the food pantry she operates on her province’s Jenkintown, Pa., campus. The Ukrainian native, who arrived in the U.S. in 2013, has dedicated herself to serving some of the Philadelphia area’s most vulnerable populations, including those experiencing addiction and homelessness. (OSV News photo/Gina Christian)”