Tetiana

The war, like many of our compatriots, caught us by surprise. But the first powerful explosions, which I heard around 4 am on February 24, were already too familiar to me. My heart pounded so much that it almost jumped out of my chest and tears rolled down the hail – I felt the sticky hot deja vu of summer 2014 in Donetsk … For a moment I was immersed in memories where I have a wonderful family – husband, children, friends, favorite cottage on weekends, a peaceful and happy life. Then, due to the Russian invasion, I lost everything at once! I could not believe that the situation was repeating itself. No, it can’t be – my heart was screaming, I can’t lose my home again, but the reality broke into my brain with horrible explosions that could be heard from all sides. I ran away from Donetsk under fire with my two children, and now I still have a six-month-old baby … In the first days I was in a completely stunned and helpless state, feeling almost animal fear for the children’s lives.

Sometime on the fifth day, after another horrible night in a cold basement with screaming babies almost all the time, I realized that I had to provide a safe place for all of us, because I am the only guardian for my children. If something suddenly happens to me, who will take care of them? It was difficult for me to make this decision due to a strong fear of danger on the way for the baby, but it was much more dangerous to stay.

We were very lucky to get to the station, get on the train to Lviv and finally leave the country. The exhausting road here took more than 4 days. Due to all the circumstances and severe stress, we became very ill, especially the little one (in the first weeks we went with him to three doctors and even to the intensive care unit, because the child began to suffocate at night, the whole body was covered with terrible eczema). But the most important thing was that we were safe!

In the Czech Republic, we were helped by friends and caring people who provided housing for the first time. But I had to find something more stable, because each move (we changed our location 4 times in three weeks) caused me terrible stress, because it reproduced my trauma – the need to quickly pack, grab the children and escape. I started asking for help from all my acquaintances and eventually got Kimberly’s number. I immediately called and told about the situation. After Kim said that she would find us a place where we could stay for a long time, I felt very happy, as if a stone had fallen from my heart. Because at that moment, anxiety was already flooding my head.

When we arrived in the new place, Kim met us with her daughter and friend. I was just amazed at how they prepared for our arrival, took care of literally all the necessary things for us and the little ones – food, hygiene products, toys and more. In the new place I began to gradually recover, my sleep and the baby improved, the night horrors began to disappear, I regained the ability to think about the future. Amity helps with all sorts of issues, such as finding a job, enrolling a child in kindergarten / school, organizing great leisure activities for children and the refugee community – and this is a far from the complete list.

My endless thanks to Kimberly and all of the Amity team for their deep humanity for so many affected families from Ukraine! I am very grateful to the Czech Republic for their hospitality and help, I am very grateful to all the people who support Amity – thanks to you so many ruined destinies get a chance to recover! Thanks to Kim and all of you, my hope and faith in a good future for humanity, which I almost lost, is being restored! I wish Kim, the Amity team, peace, prosperity and happiness to all concerned people and their families.