BAR HARBOR — At around 10:15 last Friday morning, while Art Worster was on the phone with the Islander, he received an email telling him that the final three members of the Ukrainian family that his organization has been working to resettle on Mount Desert Island had been cleared to come over.
Worster is board president of the Hancock County Neighborhood Support Team (NST), which was formed last year by representatives of several local churches for the purpose of bringing Ukrainian refugee families to the area and getting them settled in.
Worster said the first family to be matched with the local group is a mother, father, 17-year-old son and two daughters, ages 15 and 5.
“At the start of the [Russian] invasion, they were in Kherson…just trying to keep from getting bombarded out,” he said. “They were eventually able to escape to Kyiv. But now Kyiv is getting shelled daily.”
The Hancock County NST applied to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in early December to bring each of the five family members over, pledging that the group would be financially responsible for them.
The applications for the father and son were quickly approved, but those for the females were denied without explanation. Worster’s group made a few minor revisions in the applications and submitted them again. And again, they were turned down. So, they tried a third time and waited. Finally, approval for the three female members of the family to come to the U.S. came through last Friday.
“They will be driven across the border to Poland, and then they will fly from Warsaw to Boston,” Worster said. “The family is completely out of funds, so we will buy them airline tickets.”
He said they are expected to arrive in the U.S. by the end of the month. They will immediately receive Social Security cards and temporary work permits.
Worster said someone who wishes to remain anonymous has bought a recently constructed house on Indian Point Road that he will lease to the Hancock County NST for the Ukrainian family.
“We’ll make sure the house is furnished and made comfortable for them,” he said.
“After everything they’ve been through, we want to make everything as nice as we possibly can for them.”
He said his group will be seeking donations of furniture. Meanwhile, someone has donated a car for the family to use while they are here.
“Once they arrive, they can apply for [longer term] work permits, and we will be helping to get them employed someplace.”
Worster said the father previously ran tire stores in Kherson, and the mother was in government administration at some level.
He said the two teenage members of the family speak English. Via Zoom, he showed the Islander a video of the 15-year-old singing in a Ukrainian vocal contest.
“She has an untrained but really, really strong voice,” he said. “MDI High School will be thrilled with her, I imagine.”
Her brother also will attend MDI High, while their little sister will be in kindergarten at Conners Emerson School.
“I’m sure she will pick up English pretty quickly,” Worster said. “And there is a Ukrainian student at COA (College of the Atlantic) who is anxious to help in any way she can, so she can help with language.”
He said he also has a friend who has taught English to Ukrainian students at George Stevens Academy in Blue Hill and has offered his services.
Worster said the Hancock County NST would pay the family’s utility bills and provide other necessities until they can support themselves.
They will be here under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Humanitarian Parole program, which means their stay in this country is limited to two years. But there are several pathways through which they may become eligible for permanent resident status.
The Ukrainian family will immediately be eligible for MaineCare and a number of federal assistance programs.
While continuing to assist this family of five, Worster said the Hancock County NST would be working to bring another Ukrainian family to the Ellsworth-MDI area.
The NST is made up of representatives of the four Episcopal parishes on MDI and St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Ellsworth, where Worster is vice president and treasurer. He lives in Seal Cove.
He said the group has received generous funding so far, but always welcomes more support. Donations are tax deductible. Anyone interested in learning more about the Ukrainian resettlement effort and how to support it may email him at artworster@gmail.com.
