On July 13, 2021, the Voroshilovskiy District Court of Rostov-on-Don sentenced Sister Olga Ganusha to a two-year suspended sentence.

Olga Ganusha

• Born: 1961 (Rostov-on-Don, Rostov Region)

• Biography: Retired single mother with one son. Enjoys making handicrafts, listening to classical music, and reading books

• Was drawn to study the Bible when she learned about the hope of living in a paradise with resurrected family members and friends. Baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1995

In early 2019, Russian authorities covertly installed audio and video surveillance equipment in Sister Olga Ganusha’s apartment. Based on this so-called evidence, they raided her apartment in June 2019. Those in charge also looked through her personal notebooks, memos, and booklets. Olga was officially charged on August 17, 2020, and her trial began on March 4, 2021. Her “crimes” include hosting and participating in religious meetings and talking to others about her faith. Sisters Lyudmila Ponomarenko and Galina Parkova were initially part of the same investigation but are now being tried separately.

During the nearly two years of investigation and trial, Olga has drawn strength from praying specifically and intensely. Olga says: “I pray each day for God’s name to be sanctified like never before. I pray for our brothers and sisters who are in detention centers, prisons, and under house arrest to be able to give a witness and have inner strength. And I pray for them to have unwavering faith in Jehovah and the fact that he will never abandon us in difficult circumstances.” Thinking about her personal situation, she adds: “I ask Jehovah to help me conquer my fears, to rely on him, and to make me an iron pillar and copper wall, as he did for Jeremiah. I want to be able to endure all the fiery trials, just like the three Hebrews. And I hope to conduct myself in a dignified way, just as Christ did before his enemies.”

We are confident that Jehovah will continue to support Olga and others being persecuted for their faith with his “right hand of righteousness.”—Isaiah 41:10.