Fr. Alexander Dovganyuk died in a car accident on April 10, 2016, leaving behind his wife, Matushka Anastasia, with their two young children.

The family was awaiting the birth of their second child in 2016 when the accident took the life of this young, healthy priest. Fr. Alexander had already passed when Matushka gave birth to a daughter. Their son was only 2 years old at the time, and Matushka Anastasia was only 23—practically a child herself.

Now she raises children herself. They live in a small town in the Kaluga Oblast where there is almost no work, and what jobs there are offer only meager salaries and won’t take a mother with two young children anyways. Additionally, the children are often sick, which presents a problem. They’re too young to be left at home alone, but if they’re sick, they can’t go outside, so Matushka can’t even get to the store.

Until our Fund started to help—and our help is that of simple, kind-hearted people—Matushka was living in severe poverty. She even had to spend her nights knitting belts for sale while the children were sleeping.

The family lives very modestly on an insufficient widow’s pension. They can never allow themselves anything superfluous.

The family really needs our help right now.

Alexander Dovganyuk was born on August 27, 1987, in Uzbekistan.

When he was 5, he started going to church with his grandmother. Little Alexander surprised his grandmother when he told her that when he grew up, he would work for God. And indeed, the Lord led him to work for Him, which he zealously did until his repose.

At the age of 11, Alexander was blessed to serve in the altar. Despite his youth, he knew the services well. Thus, his whole youth was spent in church, and in 2011, he began his studies at the Kaluga Theological Seminary. Two years later, he got married to Anastasia, a student of the theological school.

At first, they rented an apartment in Kaluga. These were very difficult times for the young family. Sometimes they even went hungry, but they endured all hardships. Alexander literally tore himself apart taking care of his wife and son. After school, he would immediately rush off to work at a bakery where he sifted flour and carried heavy sacks. At night, he worked as a janitor and security guard at the same bakery. And so on, every day.

On Saturdays and Sundays, he would go on parish visits as subdeacon to Bishop Nikita, and on Monday, the school-work cycle would start all over again. He was always very energetic and hardworking, almost never taking a break.

Alexander was never discouraged, but always hoped in God, even when they had nothing at home but flour and water. They would just make flatbreads and drink tea.

He was ordained to the priesthood on February 15, the feast of the Meeting of the Lord, in 2014, and was appointed to the Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in the city of Ludinovo, where he began his short but zealous and vibrant priestly ministry. The couple’s firstborn, Zakhar, was also born the same year.

When the couple first arrived at the church, the parishioners welcomed them coldly, which didn’t bother Fr. Alexander at all. He quickly found a way to connect with each person, delving into all their problems, never brushing them aside, and they gradually came to love hih. He burned with faith and zeal, giving light to others.

Until they got a car, Fr. Alexander would go about his priestly work on foot, covering long distances in all kinds of weather. He himself went around to various factories, asking for materials to restore the church in the village of Zikeevo. Sometimes he was turned away, but he did manage to find people who were willing to donate to the church.

Father really loved the elderly and the lonely. He would always visit them on feast days and always tried to have a gift for them. He was hardly ever at home, always on the road or at church.

Nothing could have foretold the tragedy that was to take place on April 10, 2016. It was an ordinary day, full of services and priestly cares. Fr. Alexander served Liturgy in Zikeevo in the morning and the All-Night Vigil in the evening.

Matushka put her son to bed that night and drifted off to sleep herself. She woke hours later, but Father still wasn’t home. She tried calling him, but his phone was turned off. Then she and her cousin went to look for him…

The rest was like a bad dream: the wrecked car, the police, the funeral.

Matushka was seventh months pregnant when Fr. Alexander died. He was about to turn 30 in the prime of his life, and his son wasn’t even 2 years old.