7News was there as millions of refugees escaped violence and destruction days after the war in Ukraine began.
Adam Williams reported in March 2022, “I’m in Ukraine now crossing into Poland. This is Marika… The biggest and busiest border crossing”
One year ago many of the refugees we saw were mothers and children fleeing Russian bombs while coping with the trauma of leaving their husbands and fathers behind to fight.
“I drive to Poland,” said 11-year-old Andree.
He and his mom Katia were taking shelter in a theater in Przemysl, Poland.
Adam Williams: “Where is your father?”
Andree: “He’s in Kharkiv.”
Adam: “Do you miss him? “
Andreev: “Yes”
Adam: “Do you talk to him?”
Andree: “I send him messages.”
Today the work continues in Przemysl – especially helping children like Andreev.
“We met so many children. How are they dealing with the trauma?” Adam Williams asked.
“They do miss their families… Their fathers, grandfathers…They talk about it very often,” Tatiana Nakonieczna said. She is a volunteer with Ukrainian House – an organization that is helping refugees rebuild their lives in Poland.
Adam Williams: “How are they adjusting with a new language? Are they finding jobs? Are they finding housing? How are they doing?”
Tatiana Nakonieczna: “They are doing very well. Przemysl is not very big city. It is estimated that about 8,000 people, the refugees, decided to stay in our city, which is quite a lot considering Przemysl is about 55…60,000 people. We provide legal advice. We also have employers who help to find jobs, who help to find accommodation for refugees.”
These were the accommodations we found at the theatre last year
The ballroom became an emergency shelter filled with blankets, cots, clothing and toys.
Today the refugees being helped by Ukrainian House have been moved to a different building where they can sleep in beds and have more of the amenities of home.
“This is where we have the office, we have the kitchen here. We also provide some help. People will not be left without any help, that’s for sure.”
And Tatiana prays those of us an ocean away will keep helping too.
“Support the Ukrainian Army because without this support, Ukraine will not be able to defend, not only itself, but the whole Europe actually and Poland especially. Please do support Ukraine. There is so much work to do,” Tatiana said.
It was mainly volunteers helping the refugees at the theatre when we visited. But now Ukrainian House is getting funding from large foundations and has been able to hire a staff. If you’d like to help with their work, click on the links below:
https://www.unicefusa.org/what-unicef-does/where-unicef-works/europe/ukraine?form=FUNGNXBYXDH
https://www.facebook.com/narodnyj.dim
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