February 22, 2022, Vasylisa celebrated her ninth birthday with her family and friends in their home in Kiev. She was ecstatic, as there amongst her birthday gifts sat the much-asked-for Barbie dream house. I doubt she slept that night with all the excitement. She wouldn’t sleep the next night either.

At 4:00 am on the morning of the 24th, the family was shaken out of sleep by the rumble of bombs. Russia was invading Ukraine, and 9-year-old Vasylisa, along with her mom and dad, older sister, and little brother were forced to flee. Within fifteen minutes, each family member had thrown essentials into a backpack and they were on their way, joining the throngs of families also escaping the onslaught.

Everywhere the family ran to hoping to find calm turned out to be another hot spot. Vasylisa’s parents finally decided to make for the border. Equipping each child’s possessions with their name, and a contact number, should the unthinkable happen, the family set out by car. Line ups for the border extended kilometres, and they had nothing to do but wait it out, trapped in their vehicle with bombing overhead.

Mom rolled up the windows and read out loud to distract the children. It would take them four days to get to Poland and the reassurance of a bed. Five of them would share a double bed until completed paperwork offered them the opportunity to come to Canada.

In May 2022, they landed in Toronto to start their new life. Dad had found a contact who offered a place for the family to live and employment. It was a one bedroom apartment also occupied by a family of four with a dog that liked to bite. Vasylisa’s family was devastated.

That’s where I came in. In their travels through Warsaw, they just happened to meet a man with a little pink-haired dog. I was coordinating with that man to help Ukrainians fleeing war. He called me and asked for my help. After explaining the situation to my husband, he volunteered to pick the family up and bring them to our home.

That is how 9-year-old Vasylisa and her family came to live with us in our small town. Dad found a job within days, the kids started school, and mom found work too. The whole village rallied around the family to help them get situated in their own home, with furnishings.

Then one day, Mom mentioned that the kids missed their toys. I put out a call and a response came from another city, an hour or so away. The donor met us half way with a trunk full of age appropriate toys.

Imagine Vasylisa’s face when the biggest item was a Barbie dream house, just like the one she’d left behind.

Vasy, as we now call her, turned 13 this week. She now considers us her Grandma and Grandpa. We celebrated with cake and board games and reminisced over the last four years – how much has changed, and how much remains unresolved.

Vasy’s parents hope one day they’ll be able to return to Ukraine to visit loved ones left behind. For now, they have come to love Canada and hope to continue raising their family here. With slow immigration processes, and no end in sight for the war, their lives remain in limbo.

(Photo is Vasy’s family with Ric and I from Christmas 2025. Vasy is in the back row, middle, to the left of me.)