Journey from Mariupol, Ukraine, to Montrose

Family hoping for support from their new community

 

A family went through an extreme journey to flee their home country of Ukraine, to seek asylum in Montrose. After being woken up to explosions on February 24, this family, along with the two young children, decided to escape to safety. The decision was made to leave their home on March 16.

“At that moment, only women and children remained in Mariupol. It was my aunt, Valentina, who is 80 years old, myself (Natella), my niece, Alina, with children, 8-year-old Miroslava, and one-and-a-half-year-old Matvey, along with my daughter, Katya,” Natella Dzhelali, of Mariupol, shared.

These brave women and children took it upon themselves to flee for safety. Along their long journey, they saw their country and hometown destroyed.  “The whole nightmare is beyond words,’ Dzhelali stated.

They recalled seeing cities reduced to nothing, bombs falling nearby, dead people, and more horrific scenes. “We tried not to even look around,” Dzhelali shared. Despite all that they have been through and have seen, they are hopeful for a day when it is safe for them to return home.

Traveling by car for much of the trip, the family tried to stay safe and out of the line of fire. Their first destination was Romania. Italy was next, where they stayed with friends for two weeks. From there, they flew to Mexico City, and traveled to Tijuana. After crossing the border into San Diego, California, they made it to their final destination of Montrose.

Olga Shinka, of Plymouth, met this family through a Facebook group Russian Speaking Minnesota, of which she is an administrator. Since the war started, a refugee Facebook page has also been created with over 1,300 members. “They were driving through a war zone, they survived all that,” Olga Shinka stated.

Currently, the family is staying with Marina and Timothy Wyers, in Montrose. Marina is Alina’s mother.

Now, Dzhelali and her family are looking to get more involved in the Montrose community and hopefully make come connections. “There are Russian- and Ukrainian-speaking groups in Hennepin and Anoka Counties, but not in Wright County,” Shinko shared. “It would be nice for people with Ukrainian ties to reach out to them, and for people to be good neighbors,” she continued. Dzhelali was a dentist in Ukraine, her daughter was a surgeon. They hope to get back to their professions soon.

There is a GoFundMe page set up for the family. Currently, they are not appoved to work yet in the United States. “They need assistance now,” Shinko stated. They need essentials, such as food, toiletries, and transportation. To visit their GoFundMe page, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/family-escapes-mariupol-to-montrose-mn.

 

Publication: 

The Drummer and The Wright County Journal Press

PO Box 159
108 Central Ave.
Buffalo MN 55313

www.thedrummer.com

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