Two Ukrainian Couples Will Find Refuge in Glennallen
Allison Sayer - CRR Staff
Glennallen local Judy Shaw is helping two couples escape the violence in The Ukraine and take shelter in Glennallen. Vova and Miia will arrive in late December, and Pavlo and Yevheniia will arrive sometime in early January.
Shaw has taken responsibility for providing “sponsorship,” which means she is responsible for the couple’s basic welfare. According to Shaw, it mostly entailed filling out paperwork and providing documentation proving her ability to provide for the couples’ needs if need be. The Anchorage based organization New Chance Ukraine Relief Program helped to facilitate the sponsorship.
New Chance, which arose from a church with a large Ukrainian membership, has been helping Ukrainians to find hosts and support throughout Alaska.
The couples will initially be housed at The Caribou Hotel and will have initial job opportunities either at the hotel, IGA, or The Hub. The three businesses are partnering to look after them. Once the couples get on their feet, they will be free to look for housing or jobs wherever they wish.
The couples are hopeful that they will be able to return home to a Ukraine at peace in the future.
Shaw heard about New Chance from Valdez resident Kurt Wilson. Shaw said, “What it boils down to is there’s no jobs or anything over there right now. One couple that’s going to come over is in a hot zone. They’ve got bombs going off all the time. I couldn’t imagine living that way. When this opportunity came up to help a couple of people, I took it.”
Shaw has been in touch with the incoming couples via email and Facetime, using App-based translation programs to communicate. Vova and Miia speak some English. Pavlo and Yevheniia speak very little, but they say they have been practicing to prepare for their arrival in the United States.
Shaw described how moved she and her family were when they spoke with Yevheniia over Facetime. She had asked the couple what their goal was in participating in this program. Yevheniia said, “We want a safe place to live,” and began to cry.
The couples will not have much when they arrive. Shaw is hoping members of the community can go through their closets and find some gently used winter gear to donate. As far as size, “The two gals look like they’re pretty small. One guy has a medium build and another is a pretty big guy.”
Donations can be brought to the IGA. Anything that does not fit or is extra will be sent to other refugees in Alaska. “We’re going to set up a closet over at the hotel and put all the stuff in it so they’ll have a variety to choose from,” said Shaw.
I asked Zori Opanasevych, New Chance Executive Director, to tell me more about the anticipated needs for the people who will be arriving here. In an email, she replied they will occasionally need transportation to Anchorage for appointments and other needs.
However, Zori added, “Most importantly, these people will need friends. It is hard to be uprooted by force, not their own will, and try to make a living in a new place where they don’t know anything or speak the language. Someone could invite them to a community event, on a hike, or for a cup of tea. They will practice their English, it will make them feel welcomed and it’ll help them cope with the changes in their lives.”
Zori added, “Both of these couples are coming from the hot zones. One of the lady’s brother-in-law is an officer in the Ukrainian army and is fighting in the occupied territory of Donetsk. They have been without electricity for over a month now.”
Shaw said she is “trying to help people who are in a war zone through no choice of their own. Here in the states sometimes we think we have it pretty bad, but compared to so much of the rest of the world we have it pretty good.”
If you would like to get in touch with the Glennallen couples when they arrive, please reach out to Judy Shaw at the IGA. To learn more about helping Ukrainian refugees throughout Alaska, please visit ukrainereliefprogram.com