Simsbury family helps bring Ukrainian relatives to America with the help of friends and neighbors

“God told me we need to leave.”

On the first night that Russians started bombing Ukraine on Feb. 24, those seven words were the beginning of nine Ukrainians’ exodus from a suburb in Kyiv to convents and churches in Poland and Portugal to then find stable refuge in Simsbury.

The first family, Arina, Yana, Ievgeniia, Viktoriia and Nataliia (their last names have not been provided out of privacy concerns), landed at Bradley International Airport on June 15. The second family, Vitalii, Oksana and their 10-year-old son Savva and 7-year-old daughter Emma, are still in Lisbon, Portugal, held up by the juxtaposition of two numbers on one of their passports. The hope is that they make it to Simsbury sometime within the next few weeks.

They are a tiny fraction of the estimated 5.2 million Ukrainians who have fled the country since Russia invaded, but who showcase the resourcefulness and resilience of the refugees and the willingness of family members and strangers to provide humanitarian aid.

“We’re relieved the process worked,” Simsbury resident Trina Cardinal, who spearheaded the effort to get the nine over to the U.S., said. “I am really happy [the five] are here. We are very thankful for all the people who reached out to help us. It has been an overwhelming task to save nine people from Ukraine.”

The Cardinals, who are cousins to the two families, worked on doing whatever they could to provide support and find a way to have them travel to the U.S.

Fleeing the war

Even though they are currently tied up in a bureaucratic snarl in Portugal, Vitalii, Oksana and their two children were the first to leave Ukraine when the fighting began. Oksana was the one who was jolted awake when the bombing began and knew they had to leave the country.

They crossed the border into eastern Poland and were ultimately given shelter at a church and support by local families in Poland.

Oksana helped cook, clean and care for children, as well as prepare rooms for other refugees who arrived daily. Vitalii worked to get women and children who were still in Ukraine, to safety. In one instance, he traveled 10 hours round trip to Warsaw to help a family friend and a baby who were traveling alone.

Meanwhile, 6-year-old Arina, 9-year-old Yana, their mother Ievgeniia, grandmother Vitkoriia and grandmother Nataliia — Vitalii’s mother and his brother’s children, wife and wife’s mother — had planned to stay in Ukraine but fled when a nuclear power plant caught fire on March 4.

By then, men 18 to 60 were not permitted to leave the country, so the three women and two girls left for Poland.

Their journey was more arduous and dangerous than the original four. It took them three days dodging war zones and enduring cold weather, walking into Poland to get to Vitalii’s family living in the church in western Poland, Cardinal said.

“They were on a bus that drove for 12 hours from a remote town that bordered Poland and Ukraine,” Cardinal said. “They walked a half a mile with other people in 30-degree weather to cross the border. Then they went to a train station and took two trains, standing room only, to get to Vitalii, who was in a church in western Poland. …

“They stayed in churches and convents and really lovely people helped them.”

Efforts in the U.S.

The nine qualified to travel to the U.S. through the Uniting for Ukraine, a program that enables Ukrainian citizens to come to America provided they have a supporter in the U.S. who agrees to provide them with financial support for the duration of their stay.

The program provides a two-year parole period for the families to stay, but they must stay the full two years, otherwise they aren’t allowed back in the program, Cardinal said.

The Cardinals agreed to have their family members come, but they didn’t have room for all nine. Furthermore, they needed assistance with travel expenses, the bulk of which was airfare, as well as food and other necessities for when the families arrived.

Cardinal set up a GoFundMe page, Cousins Helping Cousins, to raise funds for the effort. So far it’s raised a little more than $13,000.

People stepped forward by donating their airline miles so the first group of five could fly to the U.S. The other four tickets are being handled by the Cardinals’ extended family and a friend.

As for the space issue — Cardinal said her family lives in a nice, three-bedroom cape, but not big enough to accommodate all nine Ukrainians — serendipity stepped in. Several months ago, two Harvard men created a website Ukraine Take Shelter, a kind of Airbnb for refugees, where anyone in the world could say they have available space in their homes for displaced Ukrainians.

“I’m up at 3 a.m. thinking I’m trying to save my husband’s family, where is everybody going to live?” Cardinal said. “I decided to go on the website. I plugged in Simsbury, CT, and this guy, Marty McMahon, popped up. He and his wife had three bedrooms and a bath for Ukrainians.”

It turns out McMahon lives just two miles from the Cardinals.

“This website is a worldwide website, and I figured it’s going to be a needle in a haystack, but let’s see if there’s anybody on this website who is willing to take in Ukrainians,” Cardinal said.

When she asked her neighbor why he’s opening his home to Ukrainians, he said his coworkers were traveling to the Ukraine/Poland border to help refugees. “He said, ‘I couldn’t do that, but I could offer rooms to my house because I have a big house,’” Cardinal said.

With their acceptance into the Ukrainian parole program, and airfare and lodging all set, the nine just had to make it to the U.S.

A company in Poland had sold some minivans that were destined for Portugal, according to Cardinal. The Poland-based company entrusted Ukrainian refugees, including the nine, to drive the minivans to Portugal.

“Some company lent the Ukrainian travelers brand-new vehicles,” Cardinal said.

That’s how the nine wound up living in a convent in Portugal, where they waited to get clearance to fly to the U.S. Four remain behind as officials work on Oksana’s passport issue.

Cardinal said U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy’s office has been working diligently to clear up the matter.

Meanwhile, Arina, Yana, Ievgeniia, Viktoriia and Nataliia flew to Philadelphia, where they encountered one more snag. The group’s June 14 flight to Bradley was canceled, delaying their arrival in Simsbury by 24 hours.

Finding a new home

The scene at Bradley on June 15 was “magical,” Cardinal said when the five finally arrived.

The Ukrainians were greeted with signs that said “Welcome to America” in Ukrainian and “Welcome to Connecticut — We love you Cousins.”

The group was tired, Cardinal said, but everyone was smiling ear-to-ear.

“It was beyond magic because we had worked so hard for it,” she said. “It was mostly smiles and just happiness … a sense of disbelief. I still feel like I’m living in a movie and I still don’t believe what’s happening.”

The five living in Simsbury are currently adjusting to life in America. They speak little English.

“We do a lot of Google Translate,” Cardinal said, adding that she has a group of translators to help out as well. “We also have relatives in Ukraine who get on Facebook Messenger” and translate.

The five, along with the Cardinals, attended a benefit concert at the Old Well Tavern on June 17 that featured Simsbury High musicians, organized by SHS student Katie Lepak. The event raised $1,001.

In light of the outpouring of support, the patriarch of the family, Max, who is fighting in Ukraine, expressed his gratitude in a post on Facebook.

“Many thanks to Trina and Rich Cardinal family for helping my family,” he wrote. “In difficult times you have become a huge blessing to my family. My heart is overflowing with joy for what you have done. And to all those who helped you, a huge thank you. Tears of happiness on my face for what you did. God bless your family.”

There is still plenty of work to be done, Cardinal said, including getting approval for the adults to work, getting the children registered for school and finding medical providers, among other things.

Cardinal says several companies have reached out with employment opportunities once the adults get the OK to work.

With the expanded family, they need a seven-seat vehicle, Cardinal said.

“We’re looking for a donation,” she said. “We’re kind of figuring it out as we go. I don’t have a master plan.”

The one overarching theme, Cardinal said, is that she has found plenty of people willing to lend a hand during difficult times.

“There’s more good than bad in the world, don’t you think?” she said. “We’re making lemonade out of lemons.”

Gift cards and donations can be mailed to fundraising coordinator Ellen Naughton, 36 Massaco Street, Simsbury, CT 06070. Alternatively, donations can be made to the following: Catholic Charities, Norwich CT helps all people of all faiths, and is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that provides documentation for tax-deductible contributions. Make checks payable to “Catholic Charities” with “Cardinal-Ukraine” in the check memo line. 100% of all donations go directly to the “Cardinal Family Helping Ukrainian Cousins” Fund. Catholic Charities takes no fee. Mail to: Catholic Charities, Diocese of Norwich, Attn. Susan Connelly, 331 Main St., Norwich, CT 06360.

Ted Glanzer can be reached at tglanzer@courant.com