Andy Leibenguth boarded a train bound for war-torn Lviv, Ukraine, a trip that would take the better part of the day.

Security was tight. Ukraine forces armed with AK-47 rifles stopped the train twice to scan travelers’ identification cards and passports.

Leibenguth was the only American on board. He was also the only one who packed 400 decks of playing cards, bottles of bubbles and colorful costumes.

Ukrainian officials spent extra time questioning him.

“They appeared both curious and amused with my goals,” the Tamaqua native said,

Leibenguth’s volunteer mission is different from most. He’s traveling alone, and is using magic and comedy to bring smiles to refugees, shelter workers and others impacted by the war.

He arrived in Poland late last month, and spent about two weeks volunteering at Warsaw shelters. A U.S. Marine and Iraqi war veteran, Leibenguth has assisted with Salvation Army and Red Cross emergency services both locally and across the United States, including stints as a shelter manager following hurricanes Katrina and Ike.

Leibenguth is staying in a church in Lviv.

“The church I am staying takes in refugees daily and supports them by housing, feeding and providing other services. I am happily sharing a room with 12 refugees,” he said. “The church also serves as a donation distribution site.”

Each day is different.

“My daily routine is completely random and consists of entertaining refugees with my comedy magic or physical labor, whichever is more important at the time,” Leibenguth said.

When he leaves the shelter, security is tight everywhere.

“There are sandbags, walls and road barricades all over the place. There are roving checkpoints that stop vehicles to perform ID checks,” he said. “A bus I was on today was surrounded by white vans and soldiers entered the bus to check IDs.”

And yet, he said, western parts of Ukraine aren’t as seriously affected by the tragedy as other parts of the country. If power goes off, it’s restored a short time later. Store shelves are stocked with food and transportation hasn’t ceased. The majority of markets, restaurants and schools remain open and normal daily routines continue, he explained.

“Yes, there is a terrible war going on, military everywhere, missile sirens going off and barricades all over the place. For some here, the best way to cope is to simply avoid what you have no power over. Life must go on. You can’t just stop living. That wouldn’t make sense,” he said. “Ukrainians are just like you or me, except they live in an active war zone.”

On a recent evening, he watched as a refugee mother entered shelter.

“She tucked in her sleeping teenage son’s blanket and gathered his dirty clothes. Refugees are hiding their sorrow and showing their bravery,” he wrote.

There are times when he gets only a few hours of sleep, but he said it’s worth it. For example, he recently entertained about 100 orphaned children, and was overwhelmed by their smiles.

“I have no regrets about taking on my mission here. Oddly, I am not scared, even while a missile warning sirens is heard in the middle of the night. Honestly I feel more in control here than at home in the U.S. Guessing it’s a PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) thing,” said Leibenguth, who suffers from the disorder because of his war experiences.

He finds that Ukrainians are “exactly” like Americans, with the exception of the language.

“The language gap is the biggest challenge. I see very few Americans at shelters or places I go. Every person speaks either Ukrainian, Polish, Russian or another language. Only about 1 in 10 Ukrainians can hold an English conversation with me,” he said. “At least laughter is universal.”

Leibenguth said it took a day or two for Ukrainians to understand him and his purpose.

“But I can see that they enjoy my humor and are very appreciative for what I am doing,” he said.

He doesn’t plan to limit himself to the church shelter. He’s working with the church’s pastor and a Ukrainian police officer to find locations or homes where he can spread cheer. He doesn’t plan to travel alone.

He will eventually return to the border of Poland and Ukraine to entertain refugees.

“Laughter helps improve soldier morale and lessen refugee and volunteer depression, even for a second,” he said.

From there, he’ll travel to Poland, entertain more refugees and return to the United States.

“Russia and Ukraine were like family to each other. This war doesn’t make sense,” he said. “I said it before and I’ll say it again. The world wants peace.”

Leibenguth said additional donations received through his GoFundMe at https://www.gofundme.com/s?q=leibenguth will be given directly to the Polish/Ukrainian organizations in most need.