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Personal Reflection/Anecdote

family experience and encourage you all to start appreciating your lives now and not to wait for the
appropriate moment.
We all read the news about the beginning of the war some weeks before it started, but nobody wanted
to believe it, unfortunately. For my own family, these events had an even more frustrating impact as our
little son has a birthday on February 24. This year was quite a shock for all of us, and it is difficult to
explain what a devastating experience it was for him especially. On February 24, he was going to have his
11th birthday party with his friends and family. However, he is a brave boy and didn’t even demonstrate
any regret about canceling the party. We all supported him and promised to organize a party for all his
friends on the first day of the victory of Ukraine.
We stayed in our hometown for 3 weeks after the war started, hoping the situation would improve.
Unfortunately, when the Russians attacked our nuclear power station on March 5 and it became really
dangerous to stay there, our family was forced to make a heartbreaking decision to leave the country.
Artem and I moved to Romania, but my husband had to stay at home. As you may know, men from 18 to
60 years old are not allowed to leave the country even if they can’t serve in the military. This was difficult
for us all, but we decided to save children as the future of the whole nation depends on them.
It took us 4 days to cross the country and get to the Romanian border. I couldn’t even imagine so many
people fleeing from the country and leaving everything behind. In Romania, we stayed with a wonderful
family; Simona and her mother Aurika Dzitac are also teachers, and they immediately agreed to host us
when they knew we had decided to evacuate from Ukraine. Simona found a school for Artem, and he
made good friends there. We knew from the very beginning that we were there temporarily as I had no job
opportunities there, so when the UK announced the program Homes for Ukraine, we immediately decided
to apply and give it a try. We hoped to find a safe location for the next school year.
It is easier to start planning something than to realize the plan. It turned out to be quite challenging
to find British people ready to take strangers into their homes. Honestly, I am not sure that I would host
a family in my house in such circumstances. I sent requests to all my friends and acquaintances and just
decided to wait. Can you imagine my surprise and even astonishment when, the next day, Kammie Richter
texted that there was a family ready to take us immediately? We took their contact information and, the
next morning, had a Zoom meeting!
Amanda Barrass and Jan Wirkus turned out to be relatives of the man who had responded to the email
Kammie’s friend and DKG colleague, Jane Yoder, had shared. Needless to say, we all liked each other
from our very first meeting, and the next events started happening to us like a waterfall. Once we submitted
applications, we got visa confirmation letters in just a couple of days (although some people had to wait
for almost 2 months). This gave us more confidence in our decision, and, on May 14, we left Romania
and headed for the UK. We were full of hope and anticipated the beginning of a new life. We arrived in
Manchester on Saturday, and on Monday, May 16, Artem started studying at St. John’s Baxenden Church
of England School. Artem settled in better than we could have ever expected and made many friends at
school. He is developing socially and intellectually, and his anxiety has reduced significantly. This is
because of the learning environment, the teachers, and
their attitude toward him.
Life in the UK is challenging for refugees as we
are all in a completely new environment with rules and
standards with which we must comply. However, if one
has people who can help you to settle in here, soon you
start enjoying amazing opportunities, and I am very
happy many Ukrainian children can experience this
way of life and integrate into the new society. I do hope
that they will change their future lives and try their best

Collegial Exchange · 27