Twice Displaced, Always Grateful: She Chose Kindness

One might think that starting over from scratch twice would make a person bitter, resentful of life, others, and fate. Often, that’s exactly what happens, but not always. Some people remain profoundly grateful, even when life doesn’t spare them hardship, loss, and pain.

I want to share the story of Olga, a grateful Ukrainian woman.

Like many others from our country, she came to Canada as a result of the ongoing war and hardships at home. From the very first moment we spoke, she said the most important thing she wanted to do was express her deep gratitude to Canada for the opportunities and safety it provided and to the Canadian citizens and volunteers for their care and support.

Olga shared that she came to Canada with her husband and daughter; her nephew lives here. While still en route, they filled out a Grassroots form to find a host family, and within two days, they received a call and were offered a match with the family of Chris and Crystal Francis. Another two days later, they moved in with them in Kitchener.

The Francis family offered them housing for an entire year. They provided not just shelter, but everything they needed to live, along with warmth, care, and emotional support. Olga is endlessly thankful that these new friends, 10,000 km from her home, have become close like family.

She is also incredibly grateful to Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis and personally Stephanie Goertz for how attentive their team was, truly listening to their needs and resolving every issue. Olga recalls how a member of the team, Alona Riznyk, reached out to them and spent two hours identifying everything they would need for life and adaptation.

In just four days, housing was arranged. They found work and a place to live for their daughter in another city. Olga was invited to a job interview and hired as a marketing specialist. The Grassroots Response team helped with paperwork and transportation, and even provided clothing and food.

Later, when her husband found a job in another city, they had to move. Since they had been living at Chris and Crystal’s house, they had no furniture of their own, except for a single couch they had purchased. But once again, Grassroots and the volunteers stepped in, supplying everything they needed and even delivering it to their new home over 45 kilometres away.

Olga also spoke warmly about Al Carpenter, a volunteer with not just golden hands, but a golden heart. She told me they had needed a TV stand, and Alex had found an old cabinet which he repurposed into a beautiful piece of furniture and delivered it to their new home. Olga was happy!

Olga with Al Carpenter (and new cabinet behind)

She shares all this with genuine excitement and appreciation, as if she simply cannot keep it inside. Perhaps some people are born that way, or perhaps hardship makes some people more kind and grateful, while sadly hardening others.

This was already the second time Olga and her family had to flee the war. The first was in 2014, when they left Donetsk. She watched the missiles, explosions, and shelling from her 9th-floor apartment. But when she saw a column of tanks, they decided to flee to Kyiv. It was dangerous, but it was a chance to survive.

One major challenge was that Olga’s mother, a true patriot of Ukraine, refused to leave her hometown. They couldn’t persuade her back then. In Kyiv, they bought an apartment, found jobs, and her daughter entered university. They made new friends and connections. Eventually, they managed to bring Olga’s mother to join them in Kyiv.

Then in February 2022…Kyiv was now under fire. The rockets, explosions, and tanks were now in their new home. They had to run again, searching once more for a safe place, fleeing the horrors of war.

And once again, her mother didn’t want to leave. And there was their ill, elderly dog who couldn’t handle travel well. And her daughter needed to finish her university studies. For over a year, they hesitated to leave the country because of these unresolved issues; the biggest one being the sick dog. And during that time, her daughter successfully graduated from university. The dog passed away, but her mother still refused to leave and remained in Ukraine. Now, at 75 years old, her mother is a volunteer - she has been braiding camouflage nets for the Ukrainian army for 3 years now. Mother has many certificates and awards from the military and is proud of them!

In conclusion, it could be said that everything is good in a good person. Not everyone would stay in a war-torn country because of a sick dog. But kind people are also grateful people. And such people tend to be surrounded by others just like them. What we choose to focus on is what we see.