HARRISBURG, Pa. — The roar of morning bombs in Ukraine kept many in America awake all through the night.
“I was up all night. My family, family friends, when I was in Ukraine I had some classmates. Right now many of them are in the military, too, on the front lines,” said Ilona Penner, who was born in Ukraine and moved to the U.S. when she was 16. She now lives in Lynchburg, Va.
Penner is particularly worried about her 20-year-old cousin, Sasha Mekolenko. Two months away from completing his mandatory army service, he was deployed to Luhansk.
“He called his mom at 4 in the morning just to tell her, ‘Hey mom, we’re getting shot on. I just want to tell you I love you,’” Penner said.
Alexander Kachkovskyi is living in Leola for a year-long internship at Forest Hills Mennonite Church. His family lives in Slavuta, a city in northwest Ukraine.
“Last night was very difficult to sleep for me [because of] all kinds of news,” he said.
Kachkovskyi’s visa expires in July, but faced with the possibility of an extended conflict, he doesn’t know when he’ll be able to go back home.
“My family, especially my mother, she is in panic.”
Kachkovskyi and Penner both said their families were considering evacuation, but didn’t know where they would go. Attacks are happening throughout the country and underground shelters don’t have enough room.
They do appreciate the support from the American government and people. Some support even comes from unexpected places, like the Russian American community.
While Ukraine and Russia may be at war, their respective communities here in the U.S. aren’t, according to Leila Kider, who immigrated from the U.S.S.R. in 1979. She now lives in Philadelphia.
“People come here to America for freedom of speech, for freedom of religion and everything else. Freedom, period,” Kider said. “They understand that Putin is not for freedom.”
As the great powers fight for control, those with loved ones in Ukraine feel mostly powerless.
“It’s sad because if I was there I would not be able to do a lot,” Penner said.
“I can pray for my family and friends,” Kachkovskyi said.