“Our other life…”
We are the Artemchuk family from the south of Ukraine – the city of Kherson. My name is Marina, 36 years old, I worked for more than 10 years in government bodies: tax, in local self-government, since 2018 I have a hobby – I organize children’s festivals-art competitions in the city of Kherson, over time, my festival has acquired the status – international. My husband – Serhiy, 41 years old. He worked as a private entrepreneur, had his own two tire fitting stations, and a workshop for the production of tin products. Together we raise three wonderful children: Artem is 18 years old, a future sailor, speaks Polish and English – at a high level, is interested in history and psychology, is fond of basketball. Dasha is 16 years old, speaks English, Spanish and Polish well , has been singing since childhood and took part in famous Ukrainian competitions and TV shows. Yaroslava is 6 years old, she loves to draw and already has a small collection of her own artwork, an active and cheerful girl.
The morning 02.24.2022 changed everything!
At 5 in the morning, we woke up from the distant explosions that were on the outskirts of our city. Then there was a flurry of calls from relatives and acquaintances – no one understood what was happening and what to do in such a case, because we only encountered the word “war” in history textbooks. In a few days, our city became occupied, Russian troops entered the city itself, tore down the flags of our state, and Russian soldiers with weapons were everywhere. We hardly left our homes, except when we needed food or medicine. Lines for bread could take 5-6 hours. Within two or three days of the start of the war, medicines in pharmacies, products from the shelves, and those that were on the shelves cost three or even four times more. A limited amount of fuel was given per car. And then it completely disappeared. Home was our fortress at that time. We spent there with the children 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is no basement in our house, the bomb shelter was far from us. Therefore, we tried to arrange as much space in our house as possible for the safety of the children, so to speak. These are the windows sealed with tape, thick covers hung on the windows so that no light from the house penetrates during the dark time of the day. Although we did not turn on the light, only a small table lamp so that the youngest could play with toys at least a little. We followed the rules of concealment during wartime. In one of the rooms, which seemed to us to be the safest place in the house, we put the mattress from the bed on the floor, I slept there with the girls, the boys slept next to me. In our house there is a room for everyone, but then we tried to stay together, like a family group, especially when the explosions in the yard were very loud. We slept mostly in our clothes so that, in case of great danger, we could quickly put on shoes and outerwear. And in the corridor, near the front door, there was always a bag with documents, basic clothing, a first-aid kit and a little food and water ready.
During this time, the older children became even more mature, and for the younger one, we had a kind of idea – that we don’t go to the kindergarten and generally to the yard now, because the weather is bad, they told us that the thunder outside the window is thunder, the crackling is lightning , and in such bad weather, you have to sit, preferably on the floor. We tried our best to protect children’s psyche. Every day there was news about the destroyed premises and houses of our friends, about the death of acquaintances. People were kidnapped just from the streets of the city in broad daylight, their phones and cars were taken. One morning, friends called us and said that they would try to leave the city, although at that time it was hardly possible, there were no safe corridors, many cars with civilians were shot. Those who dared to leave had to group into convoys of several cars, white ribbons had to be tied on the cars (this was the demand of the occupiers). We hesitated for a long time and made a decision to leave everything, in general – everything! parents, home, business… take only a small suitcase of your past with you and take your children out of this hell and danger. It was a difficult decision, but the only correct one at the time. We moved to Kyiv. However, it was not safe. Russia continued numerous shelling of civilians, infrastructure…
Then one day a large group of sponsors offered us support and a move to a safe place. It was very difficult for us to make the decision to move to America. We were afraid of the unknown: how to get there, where to live, how to earn money, how our children will adjust and a huge number of other questions… But we decided to move to America. The NST team and a large number of Maine residents helped us solve all these questions.
The NST team, the UforU Program, and many kind and caring people in Maine gave us a chance new, safe life. The biggest concern for parents is the safety of their children, it is seeing a smile on their face instead of frightened eyes from air alarms, it is seeing tears of joy instead of tears from the sounds of rockets and explosions, it is seeing children looking at the sun instead of sitting for hours and days in bomb shelters. It was a large team of caring and kind people who helped us start a new life. This is not an easy path for our family: a new country, an unfamiliar language, the absence of friends and relatives, the absence of a home and a job…life from “the beginning”. But with support – it is easier to do. And we are sure that we will be able to overcome this difficult path and “revive” our life.
P.S. Now, when there is rain, wind and lightning in the yard, Yaroslava says: “Mom, look, the weather is getting worse, we have to go to a corner and sit on the floor…”. At this moment, the heart squeezes hard and hurts. However, we confidently say: «Donya, the weather here is good and will not harm us, we are safe.» We are grateful to all the people involved who helped us make our children’s lives safe. Every day we thank God and the universe for this and pray for all these people.
