UKRAINIAN NEWCOMERS CALL COLLINGWOOD HOME

KATYA LAVRYNENKO, SLAVA LAVRYNENKO, MYKOLA MASLOV AND VASYL MEDVID ARE WORKING IN THE COMMUNITY

Four individuals from Ukraine are calling Collingwood home for the time being.

Katya Lavrynenko, her twin brother, Slava Lavrynenko; Katya's husband Mykola Maslov and cousin Vasyl Medvid are from Chernivtsi, a city of about 265,000 in southwestern Ukraine. They have all been granted three-year visas and are employed with Property Valet, a rental

management firm, which has a location in Collingwood.

While it's a long way from home, Katya said they are happy to be in Canada. "Very beautiful and nice

people," she said. "We never were so far away from Ukraine. Canada opened the door for us."

It's very scary back home, Katya said. She has vivid memories of being

woken on Feb. 24 when Russia attacked. "Feb. 24, Russia attacked our country at five o'clock in the morning," she said. "We wake up, every city in our country was attacked by rockets, it was very scary." Many men in her country have been sent to the front lines, including her father.

The group has been given a place to live, clothing and a car. Katya said they plan to earn money during the next three years and then return to help restore Ukraine.

Robert Iantorno, business improvement specialist, said the group will be doing property maintenance. He made contacts through the Rural Employment Initiative (REI) and felt it was a good opportunity to help some newcomers to Canada.

Tania Maksymenko, project lead for the REI, said the arrival of the Ukrainians was "the product of co-operation. There are many Ukrainians in need of employment and accommodations. This kind of co-ordination between agencies, communities, and businesses in rural Ontario is effective and encouraging."

Kateryna Ozerianska, a Ukrainian volunteer and community organizer, facilitated the arrangement. "Ukrainian newcomers to Canada are very motivated. They have left their home country and chosen Canada. They are ready, and willing to work and contribute if given a chance," she said.