03-08-2022, 11:27 PM
I thought this topic would be off-limits so I did not post any comments relating to the current situation in Ukraine.
On a personal note…
As a member of the Peace Corps, my older daughter was assigned to Ukraine in 2007. We visited her in ‘08. We had not traveled to a former Soviet bloc nation prior to this trip. To say it was an eye-opening experience is an tremendous understatement. Since she was the first American to work in her designated location (a rural area near Melitopol), she was quite a curiosity to the Ukrainians in that region. When we showed up, everyone from her host family to their neighbors to her students (she taught English as a second language at a local school) greeted us warmly. As we have learned over and over in our travels, the cliche is absolutely true - people are people regardless of their background or place of origin.
Sadly, my daughter received a note from her host mother last week indicating that things are very, very bad - no doubt worse than anything we are reading or seeing but they are persevering. It is well beyond a bleak situation.
I could go on for pages but will stop here with a final thought….
Whatever you can do to support these courageous people, please do, especially programs that focus on the children of Ukraine.
On a personal note…
As a member of the Peace Corps, my older daughter was assigned to Ukraine in 2007. We visited her in ‘08. We had not traveled to a former Soviet bloc nation prior to this trip. To say it was an eye-opening experience is an tremendous understatement. Since she was the first American to work in her designated location (a rural area near Melitopol), she was quite a curiosity to the Ukrainians in that region. When we showed up, everyone from her host family to their neighbors to her students (she taught English as a second language at a local school) greeted us warmly. As we have learned over and over in our travels, the cliche is absolutely true - people are people regardless of their background or place of origin.
Sadly, my daughter received a note from her host mother last week indicating that things are very, very bad - no doubt worse than anything we are reading or seeing but they are persevering. It is well beyond a bleak situation.
I could go on for pages but will stop here with a final thought….
Whatever you can do to support these courageous people, please do, especially programs that focus on the children of Ukraine.