December 8, 2023, the oldest son of John & Leslie Taylor Hertweck, Ethan Hertweck, sacrificed his life while fighting alongside the Ukraine military, who he had spent time training. He was with them because he couldn’t imagine training them without being alongside them in battle. Stories are abounding of his bravery in battles, as well as during that last battle. The firefight was so intense that they are still working to recover his remains.
John & Leslie will have to travel to Ukraine to accompany his remains back to the US once he has been recovered. As you might imagine, they have not been able to work during this time.If you feel led, below is a link to donate toward the fund to help them. At the least, would you pray for God’s mercy, comfort, peace & provision during this deeply grievous season?" from their former pastor Paul Kuzma
He started serving as a Combat Medic earlier this year in the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Ukraine. Ethan dedicated his life to saving lives and aiding civilians all across Ukraine, believing that "all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing".
From Leslie Hertweck on social media:
"In our donations page people have been giving a $1, and I was questioning it…it THEN dawned on me that people are donating from all over the world and to MANY people $1 is A LOT of money!!! I am SOOOO GRATEFUL for even the $1 given!!!
We still have a ways to go! I am not being paid for my time off, as I had no vacation time available (thanks to a COVID + test I was forced to take by my work last year, that forced me off work, YET, I did NOT have COVID!!! ).
At this point we’re PRAYING for the finances we will need in the coming days and for travel to Poland/Ukraine, then from there to CA, then back to Springfield. Not to mention the fact we’ll be there (in Ukraine) for probably about 3-4 weeks plus the time added on going to CA…we don’t even know WHEN this is all still going to happen.
I told my job I’ll go back on Jan.8th (unless something happens between now and then). I HONESTLY just don’t know how I’ll be able to, when we’re sitting and WAITING!!! My mind is on MY SON AND UKRAINE!!!!!!
If you can share our donation page we would so appreciate it! Please make sure to add to your post what it’s for, as some have shared but with no explanation. Thank you from the bottom of our HEARTS! Thank you to EVERYONE who have donated. You don’t even realize how much we appreciate it!! I NEVER IMAGINED in my LIFE, we would be needing to do this…. NEVER! "
Paypal link: https://www.paypal.com/pools/c/90kBXE5nR4
Marine veteran killed in Ukraine fought 12 Russians in last stand (taskandpurpose.com)
“If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without blood shed;
if you will not fight when your victory is sure and not too costly; you may
come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance of survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves.” ― Winston S. Churchill
More News from Los Angeles
- "Dangers of Author Scams" WPN Panel at 6 pm 11/21/24 pst WRITERS: Join the Writers & Publishers Network for a panel discussion designed to help authors recognize and avoid scams. Learn how to keep your work safe!
- Local Online Gardening Resrouces There are a number of online bloggers from Southern California who are focused on gardening holistically!,