Safe in Telford are Alena Petruchenko and her daughters Anastasia Limarenko, 15, and Elizaveta Petryuchenko, three.
Olena Petryuchenko and her daughters Anastasia Limarenko, 15, and Elizaveta Petryuchenko, just three, spend their first Easter in Britain.
They received a new home in Ketley Grange from the kind-hearted Pam Rodgers and her husband David.
They arrived this week after finally receiving visas, but are facing separation from other family members and getting used to life in a new country where the language barrier will be difficult, as well as major tasks such as organizing school and work.
Even small things like the task of getting a SIM card for a new cell phone and a bank account to access or deposit funds proved difficult.
The family is from Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine and is usually home to nearly 1.5 million people.
It is also a city that is heavily besieged by Russian troops, who are constantly shelling and bombing it. They are separated from their father and the wife of Elena Vitaly, who is part of the front resistance.
Host of Pam Rodgers with family
Elena’s English is broken, with Anastasia mastering the language she has learned so far in school, but it will be some time before she can enroll in school here, which she desperately wants to do. They also need to find a nursery for Elizabeth.
Pam, 57, is a credit controller at Mueller and David, 61, a production supervisor at Ricoh and live in a four-bedroom house in Ketley Grange.
She registered to sponsor a family on the government’s website, but was matched independently by Magdalena Benada of Lowley, who is part of the Facebook group Help Ukraine Telford. The group has brought another Ukrainian family to the Telford area, with 15 awaiting visas.
Pam spoke to Shropshire Star this week about the difficulties her sponsoring family is facing, they are now in the UK, but says she is just happy to be here.
She said: “The situation they come from in the wider Ukraine is unimaginable – we’ve all seen the pictures on TV, but the fact that we experienced this and had to leave home and loved ones is awful.
“They lived on the fifth floor of a block of flats, the kind you see on TV that the Russians are targeting. They came here with nothing and they have to start from scratch.
“Olena worked in the administration in Ukraine, but the family really has nothing to do with savings, because you earn very little there.
“She hopes to find a job here, but there is a language barrier and even setting up a bank account so they can get some help through child support or benefits has proved difficult.
“A friend of the family paid for their flights from Poland as a donation to the company. Refugees are expected to pay for their own flights, but again most have little or no money.
“We took them from Luton Airport because we didn’t think it would be easy to access public transport, even though it was supposed to be free for them.
“Phone companies that offer free SIM cards with balances do not exist. They tell you to go to the branch, they don’t know anything about it, so they refer you to call, who again refers you back to the stores.
“Now I ordered SIM cards from my own provider and we will pay for them.”
However, she praised the Telford & Wrekin Council, saying: “Council officials contacted us as soon as they were informed that visas had been applied for.
“They arranged a home inspection, DBS inspections and a gas safety certificate. They also offered help in finding schools for the children. “
Pam said she and David had not considered giving up the comfort and layout of their four-bedroom property to accommodate a Ukrainian family.
She said: “We made the decision at the end of February almost as soon as the invasion started and we saw what was happening.”
“Our children are out and we have a place, so there has never been any doubt in our minds that we are doing the right thing – maybe the only concern was whether we will all make it, but they are wonderful and we are happy to have them with us. . “
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