The Russo-Ukrainian War which started in February of 2014 continues to worsen for not only the militia, but the citizens of Ukraine as well. Ukrainian citizens are continuing to flee the country, seeking refuge anywhere they can. 

Uliana Nikitenko, a 15 year old girl from Nelson High School, shared her story of fleeing from Ukraine. She witnessed the war first hand, hearing the bombs, and once briefly seeing one flying through the sky. She said that the government would have extremely loud sirens in order to tell civilians to run and hide due to the bombings, stating, “When they go off, you stand there and don’t know what to do because you’re in shock.” 

February of 2022, she woke up one night around 4 AM due to the sound of the bombs. She ran to her parents room for comfort, but once their house started shaking they began packing, taking only a suitcase each with only 10 minutes to pack. Saying, “The hardest part was leaving my friends and home, and when you have to leave where you lived your whole life, not because you want to but for your safety, it’s the most depressing thing.”

When leaving Ukraine Uliana and her family immediately went to Paris, France to seek refuge where they stayed for a mere 2 weeks before moving to the west side of France where they stayed for another 3 months. Her family decided that since they have family in Oregon and the U.S was safer than France, that they would move to the U.S. When she moved to Oregon it was a shock to her when she realized that this is where she was going to live for the rest of her life. She expressed that the biggest challenges of moving to the U.S was the language barrier and how different the culture is in the U.S compared to Ukraine, saying, “it’s difficult to understand American culture and tradition when you don’t know how they communicate or do things.” 

Although she faced many hardships when moving to the U.S she was surprised and thankful for all of the support she received, stating, “We appreciate the people who pray for and support us.” Uliana’s a part of the Ukrainian Students/Supporters Club at Nelson High School which she’s the president of. She wants people to know that Ukraine won’t give up and that they’ll keep fighting.