Early in the morning on Feb. 24, while asleep in their condo in Kyiv, Ukraine, Kiril and Olha Necheporenko were awakened by a loud sound.

It was a ways off, but not so far off that it wasn’t identifiable as an explosion.

The couple had been watching the news for days. They had listened to the advice to pack a bag, prepare travel documents and be ready to leave at a moment’s notice if they had to.

That moment had come. Russia had invaded Ukraine.

When they left their home, they took two suitcases, both their cars and little else. They expected to move further into Ukraine, and eventually return. Eight months later, after bouncing around several locations with their young son, Simieon, helping with relief efforts and just trying to survive themselves, the couple has settled in Wilton, where they intend to spend at least the next two years under President Joe Biden’s Uniting for Ukraine refugee program before applying for citizenship.

Fleeing Kyiv

Kiril and Olha were a normal couple. Married for six years, they’d had their first child, and were living in the Ukrainian capitol. Kiril was a real estate agent. Olha, a painter, taught art classes and had a studio in their condominium.

While they listened to rumblings about Russian aggression against Ukraine on the news, they had no scope for just how their lives were about to change.

On that morning on Feb. 24, when they were awoken by that loud sound – what turned out to be an explosion a few hundred meters from their home – they didn’t know just how chaotic their lives were about to become.

But they did know they needed to leave, at least for a while.

With their two suitcases and important documents in hand, they left their condo, after contacting a few friends to advise them they were leaving and telling them they should get out, too.

Initially, Kiril said, the plan was not to leave the country, but quickly, the scale of what was happening hit home.

“There were kilometer lines for gas. Traffic was everywhere. It was very difficult to escape the city,” Kiril recalled. “It was like Hollywood movies, in apocalypse times – you knew the world was changed forever.”

After reassessing along with some neighbors who were also fleeing Kyiv, Kiril and Olha decided their plan to stay in the country was no longer viable, and they headed for the border – only to discover lines of cars at least 12 miles long waiting to cross. While pulled over and trying to figure out what to do, they were approached by someone who told them he knew a different crossing spot, and they decided to follow him.

It was not an easy journey, including going down forest roads and sometimes off-road altogether, but by that night, the Necheporenkos had crossed into Moldova, a small country sandwiched between Ukraine and Romania.

‘I believe in miracles’

The Necheporenkos had made it safely out of Ukraine, but they were not alone. Thousands of people were fleeing over the border. Hotels were booked, and there was no where for them to stay.

“I believe in miracles,” Kiril said. “Our escape from Kyiv – a total miracle. What happens next, also a total miracle.”

What happened next is that Kiril and Olha were at a gas station, attempting to figure out their next move, when they were overheard by a resident who offered to let them stay the night after hearing they were Ukrainian refugees.

It was the first time the family was offered compassion from someone in the world who was shocked about what was happening to their neighbors, but it would be far from the last.

After staying only a night in Moldova, the Necheporenkos crossed into Romania, where they were offered accommodations in a hotel that provided them breakfast and food for the road at no charge – another miracle.

“You see this compassion, and it is everywhere,” Kiril said. “People are touched. They want to be part of this huge outpouring of support.”

The family eventually landed in Italy, where Kiril left Olha and Simieon to head to the Poland-Ukraine border to help with relief efforts and funneling supplies into Ukraine. Eventually, his family joined him there. For a time, it looked as though they may be on their way to building a life in Poland.

The weight of the war

“It was difficult to plan,” recalled Olha. “Because my expectation, in the first few days, was that the war would end. But by now, it was totally clear that this was going to be a long and difficult war.”

The couple had a friend close their apartment and distribute their things to people who had remained in Ukraine, but had been displaced from their own homes.

“We had to build a life from the beginning,” Olha said.

They began learning Polish, and attempting to make a life there. Olha said she was able to enroll their son in school, and he started to learn some songs and Polish words. She began selling her paintings, and thought she could make a future there.

Kiril said he loved some aspects of Poland. The people were hospitable, and the cost of living was low, but he didn’t have a strong-enough grasp of the language to get a job in his field, and it was also close to the Ukrainian border, something he felt increasingly uneasy about.

Though he didn’t fear Russia trying to push its invasion into Poland, he said the threat of a possible nuclear attack, which could have wide impacts, was ever-present on his mind.

Coming to America

While Kiril and Olha were making their escape from Ukraine, on the other side of the ocean, Ken Jacobus of Wilton was watching the events unfold on television, and said he knew he wanted to help – even if he wasn’t sure entirely how.

“Like many people, I was watching the news in horror. I couldn’t concentrate on anything else,” Jacobus said.

He didn’t have any connections in Ukraine or Poland, and didn’t speak the language, but said he felt compelled to go there and add his hands to the volunteers helping refugees.

“I said, ‘I’m just going to go, and figure it out,’” Jacobus said.

Which is what happened. After reading about a volunteer who was doing work in Poland, Jacobus reached out to him and asked how he might contribute. The volunteer had already returned to America, but had a contact for Jacobus – Kiril Necheporenko.

The two didn’t work together extensively while Jacobus was in Poland. Kiril was working to get military supplies into Ukraine, and Jacobus wanted to focus efforts on helping refugees get immediate needs like housing met. But the connection was made.

Later, when Kiril and Olha were considering where to go next, Jacobus was a contact he had in his phone.

Since both Olha and Kiril speak English, seeking asylum in North America was an option. First, they considered Canada, and even sent in paperwork to apply for visas. But after sending the passports to the wrong address, and having to wait weeks for them to be returned – with no visas – and other problems with red tape, Kiril said it seemed to be a sign that it wasn’t the right place for the family.

After more consideration, he sent out a video of his family to his American contacts, asking if anyone would be willing to sponsor their family.

Jacobus was one of the people who received the video.

At first, he said he was hesitant. He had looked into the logistics of sponsoring a Ukranian family, and knew what a big responsibility it was. He had to agree to be financially responsible for the family for the next two years, and he knew little about the Necheporenkos at the time. One friend advised that the video had likely been sent to a lot of people, and someone else would probably help.

But, Jacobus said, what if everyone else was assuming someone else would help?

Ultimately, he was caught by one, recurring thought: “If someone asks for help, you should help them.”

He agreed to meet with Olha and Kiril and discuss becoming their sponsor, and after being assured they had done their research on what it would take to live in America, agreed to do so.

Under the Uniting for Ukraine program, Jacobus had to agree to be financially responsible for the Necheporenkos. In part, that meant helping them find housing. Jacobus said he and his wife had considered the idea of purchasing a second property to rent, particularly to teachers at the nearby High Mowing School, but had never done it until this opportunity came along.

The two purchased a house and outfitted it with basic furniture. Jacobus said the Necheporenkos will live there rent-free until they can get established and Kiril can find work.

Olha said they were prepared to share space in the Jacobuses’ home, and when she found out they would have their own space, was prepared to have to outfit it from scratch.

She said it was the small things in the home that touched her the most – adapters for the outlets for their European devices, a footstool in the bathroom so their son could reach the sink or a bouquet of flowers on the kitchen island.

The area is very different from Kyiv – which is Ukraine’s most-populous city – but Olha said the scenery is therapeutic for her. And for Kiril, being away from the Ukranian border has been a weight off his mind.

They said they know it will be difficult to start their life over – again, after attempting the same in Poland – but said this time they are in a place where they know the language, and with connections to help support them.

“Our plans today, is just to start our life, from the beginning,” Kiril said.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.

]]>