At 4 a.m. on Feb. 24, 2022, Olha Naichuk was awakened by a phone call that changed her family forever.
鈥淒on鈥檛 send the kids to school,鈥� her husband, Mikhailo Naichuk, said in a stressed-out tone. 鈥淩ussia has invaded Ukraine.鈥�
The morning after the attack, Olha and Mikhailo Niachuk were relieved to find out their family members were all safe, but they did not yet know their immediate family of five would soon become refugees. Within days, Olha and Mikhailo were forced to pack whatever they could carry and flee, in hopes of finding sanctuary elsewhere.
A chaotic picture came into focus on the streets outside their home in Mykulyntsi, their hometown in western Ukraine. People at gas stations and pharmacies stocked up on essentials, uncertain how the next several days would unfold.
The family鈥檚 first step was a 20-hour bus ride to Poland, with subzero temperatures adding to their misery.
鈥淚t was terrible because [at the] border, it鈥檚 like [a] few thousand people. It was very cold,鈥� Olha said. 鈥淭he man who is working border control, passport control 鈥� because a lot of people, he didn鈥檛 check who these people [were].鈥�
Their temporary refuge in Poland was facilitated by Olha鈥檚 brother, a Catholic priest whose parishioners came together to provide shelter and basic necessities to displaced families pouring in from Ukraine.
鈥淲e believed it can be two weeks or three maximum, and it should be over,鈥� Mikhailo said. 鈥淚 promised the kids that it鈥檚 only for two weeks and we will come back to Ukraine 鈥� don鈥檛 worry.鈥�
After several months in Poland on refugee status, and with no sign of a ceasefire, the mother and father started planning for their kids鈥� future.
United for Ukraine, an initiative announced by President Joe Biden in April 2022, paved the way for the Naichuk family to make the journey to suburban St. Louis on Temporary Protected Status. It鈥檚 a place they now call home away from home.
After landing on U.S. soil, the family spent weeks navigating essential paperwork, including work permits and driver鈥檚 licenses, as well as the huge cultural shock and language barrier. Despite their professional careers in Ukraine, both had to take jobs unrelated to their expertise 鈥� Olha, a historian, got a housekeeping job with the local YMCA, and Mikhailo, a geographer, got a job at a Walmart close to their Maryland Heights apartment.
Amid the challenges of starting over, Olha finds solace through the familiar patterns that remind her of the home she left behind.
鈥淚t鈥檚 my hobby to crochet,鈥� she said, holding up a tablecloth she embroidered. 鈥淚 like it.鈥�
The Naichuks also remember home by making a grandmother鈥檚 special dumplings. It鈥檚 more than just cooking, said Mikhailo, who now goes by 鈥淢ike鈥� in this country.
鈥淲hen they call to my mom 鈥� and ask, 鈥極h Grandma, we miss you, we want to try your dumplings.鈥� She say, 鈥極K, I can make them and send it to U.S.A.鈥�
In addition to home-cooked meals, Olha misses being able to send her kids outside to play. The children don鈥檛 yet have friends in their new neighborhood.
Olha now works two jobs: one at a hospital prepping surgical equipment, and a second at a banquet hall as a server. Mikhailo works 12-hour shifts in a factory. Their demanding schedules make it even more challenging to develop a social life.
Late at night, when their neighbors are asleep, Olha and Mikhailo call their loved ones back home to share mundane stories and talk about the day they will reunite. They speak with their families as often as they can but must battle time zones and spotty internet.
鈥淪ometimes they have not electricity, sometimes they have not internet,鈥� Olha said. 鈥淩ussia destroyed our electrical system.鈥�
Even after years of displacement and uncertainty about ever returning home, Olha hasn鈥檛 lost hope.
鈥淲hen I step off that plane [in Ukraine], I鈥檒l fall to my knees and kiss that ground beneath my feet,鈥� she said, with her eyes welling up.
After two years of renting, Olha and Mikhailo are relieved to finally have another place they can call home. The St. Charles house they purchased in August gives the husband and wife a sense of belonging they haven鈥檛 felt in a long time.
鈥淗ome is not just walls and roof,鈥� Mikhailo Naichuk said. 鈥淗ome, it鈥檚 people.鈥�
For now, their Missouri home provides their kids warm beds to sleep in. But they are still waiting for the day they will return to Ukraine.
鈥淚 like this home,鈥� Olha Naichuk said, 鈥渂ut inside, in my heart, is my native home.鈥�
