In the News

Click here to read HUF Plans Community Dinner
by Hope Huger
The News-Gazette March 15, 2023

Ukraine Initiative Gains Momentum

By Tori Johnsson

July 20, 2022

Hosting Ukrainian Families expects to welcome at least two Ukrainian families to Lexington, the organization stated in a June 12 meeting at Rockbridge County High School. "We are prepared to go further if the situation allows for that," co-leader Jerry Nay said.

The time frame for getting in touch with these families could be the next three or four months - maybe sooner. "We've g otten over $14, 000 i n cash gifts already," said Rev. Tuck Bowerfind, whose Grace Episcopal Church is handling donations for Hosting Ukrainian Families.

After starting up the organization, "We immediately started looking for local Ukrainians, and we did find them," Nay said. Several of those Ukrainians are involved with Hosting Ukrainian Families.

Yelyzaveta Wilhelm is a Rock bridge area resident who lived in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and came to America for her education, she said. She has three children. "This is my second home, so I am fortunate enough to have two homes," Wilhelm said.

One of her children has gotten involved in the effort to help on his native people. "Ruslan volunteered for his birthday to collect money and send funds from his birthday fund to Ukraine, Ukrainian people, Ukrainian army, and he collected $3, 000 that was transferred to Ukraine," Wilhelm said.

"This is an opportunity for us to welcome those that possibly lost everything, to help them to rebuild and help their dreams to come true, show them a peaceful and serene environment in our community, and I truly believe that we are capable of doing that," Wilhelm said.

Washington and Lee religion professor Alexandra Brown described Hosting Ukrainian Families' organizational structure, which includes a leadership team, legal and medical advisors, general advisors, a communications team and community liaisons.

As of the meeting, the group was searching for community liaisons from Southern Virginia University, the Rotary Club and any other interested organizations. "It is both interfaith and non-faith, it's whoever in the community wants to help in this effort," said Brown.

Committees have been created to handle everything from welcoming Ukrainian families, shopping, language learning, social services, employment, school and children's activities, setting up gardens for them, and more. These committees are still looking for volunteers to fill needed roles.

The committee structure is similar to those created to support the Congolese family. "These are sort of tried-and-true committees," Brown said. Local residents and Ukrainians Natalie Olekcyshyn and Alex Radsky are volunteering to store donated household items and furniture in the warehouse storage space offered by Chuck Barger.

"We've already received a great number of household items from couches to pots and pans," Jerry Nay said.

Sponsor circles are some of the effort's critical pieces. Two are partially filled already, Brown said.

Viktor Sokolyuk, an immigration and refugee consultant to Community Sponsorship Hub, elaborated on what sponsorship means and what help Ukrainians can expect in the US.

Viktor Sokolyuk has worked with Lexington to welcome refugees since 1998, when Lexington Presbyterian Church sponsored a Bosnian family, he said. Sokolyuk left Ukraine in 1989 while it was still part of the Soviet Union, coming to the United States as a refugee himself.

Arriving Ukrainians fleeing their country have been assigned a status that "does not give them any pathway to the citizenship. This is humanitarian status, humanitarian parole," Sokolyuk said.

Sokolyuk said arriving Ukrainians can receive other benefits, like employment authorization, application fee waivers from USCIS, Medicaid, food stamps, TANF and children's school lunches. They can potentially get assistance from the state of Virginia as well, including ESL help and interpretation and employment service.

"As [with] every immigrant, they have to have sponsors," Sokolyuk said. "We work with the communities, identify sponsors in the community and help a willing group to form themselves as a sponsor circle."

At least five individuals will make up one sponsor circle and become responsible for supporting a Ukrainian family financially and socially when they arrive.

Initially, sponsor circle volunteers will contact Hosting Ukrainian Families and apply through the Community Sponsorship Hub website. Sponsors will get background checks for safety, and one or two members of the sponsor circle will eventually have to apply for sponsorship through the government.

Once those applications are in, Lexingtonians and Ukrainians can start getting connected.

"We will disclose the family size, names and ages, and once you decide which family to take, you will have the opportunity to meet them online. We host conference calls and webinars; you will be able to see them and talk to them prior to their arrival," Sokolyuk said.

The current humanitarian parole period is two years, but it can be extended by Congress or shortened as conditions change. "If the situation back at home country improves, people can go back at any time," Sokolyuk said.

Mohamed Kamara, the chair of W&L's Romance language department, said he disliked the unequal treatment of European and non-white refugees around the world, but encouraged people to join in the Lexington effort.

"Ukrainians of course are human beings, just like Africans and Syrians and Iraqis. What is going on in Ukraine is catastrophic, just like what is happening in other parts of the world. It teaches us something about the precariousness of existence, how life can change in the blink of an eye," Kamara said.

Kamara quoted Marie Kilozo, a member of the Congolese family that Lexington previously hosted. "All I can think about that place is how supportive people are to each other," Kilozo wrote in her college application essay. "There is nothing I miss in the whole wide world like Lexington."

"So why wouldn't I want to be part of this project that has such a good track record? Why wouldn't I want for Ukrainian families what this community gave to Marie and her Congolese family?" Kamara said.

W&L Professor Rich Bidlack gave a presentation on the connected histories and tensions between Ukraine and Russia. "Putin is pursuing a policy of blatant genocide, both in theory and in practice," Bidlack said.

He described Ukrainian Cossacks self-governing in the 1700s and rebelling against Russia several times.

"When Russia's last Tsar, Nicholas II, fell from power in March of 1917, Ukraine immediately proclaimed an independent government, which the communists succeeded in destroying by 1921," Bidlak said.

In 1991, Ukrainians voted in favor of independence from the Soviet Union by 90 percent.

Ukraine experienced turmoil and protests in 2013 when former president Viktor Yanukovych rejected closer ties with the EU in favor of financial aid from Putin. On March 1 and 2, 2014, Russian forces seized the Crimean Peninsula. In the area and other disputed territories, about 14, 000 people have died in the last eight years even before Russia's invasion this February.

"Any criticism of the so-called 'special military operation' can result in a 15-year jail sentence in Russia," Bidlack said. "The charge that Ukrainians are Nazis is a malicious lie. Ukraine is a free and democratic country."

According to the Ukrainian government, 1.3 million Ukrainians have been forcibly deported to Russia and 21, 000 cases of suspected war crimes are under investigation.

"You truly know when you are surrounded by people that care and are actually able to make a difference in the world, so thank you for being those people, thank you for being that community," Wilhelm said.

"By helping Ukrainian families as our community did for the Congolese family not too long ago, we are keeping the spirit of hope for a better world alive in ourselves," Kamara said.

Those who wish to donate money can send a check to Grace Episcopal Church, 123 W. Washington St, Lexington, VA 24450, and put "Ukrainian Fund" in the memo line. More information and other donation options can be found at hostingukrainianfamilies.org.