Until two weeks ago, Alina, 35, used to live in Kyiv. When Russian forces attacked Ukraine she took her two children, a 4.5 year old girl and a 3 year old boy, 85-year-old grandmother, and brother-in-law, an epileptic, and drove over 20 hours to bring them to safety.
“Now we are in a relatively safe place, in Western Ukraine. Now I spend many hours every day at the computer – informing people in the West about what is happening in Ukraine and raising funds to help refugees and people who are staying in Kyiv. I also try to take care of those who have been evacuated from our church to the same region as me,” says she.
“I believe, not just hope, but I believe that the war will end soon, we will win and return to Kyiv – to rebuild it and live in our own home. My biggest fear is that this may not happen and we will have to run further.”