Returning the favour Manitoban looks to repay Ukrainian family who once welcomed him By: Chris Kitching Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Monday, Mar. 21, 2022

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/03/2022 (1012 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Russia launched its unprovoked war on Ukraine, Brad Bobrowich’s thoughts turned to a Lviv family who welcomed him with open arms during a special trip to Europe in 2013.

Worried about their safety amid Moscow’s increasing attacks, Bobrowich told his Ukrainian friends his family was ready to take them in if they wanted to seek refuge in Canada.

The St. Andrews man is now leading an effort to bring a mother, Ilona Protynyak, and her two children — son Demian, five, and daughter Milena, four — to Manitoba while the war rages on.

Protynyak’s husband and the children’s father, Andrew, 31, has no choice but to stay behind and help the resistance, as most men aged 18 to 60 are banned from leaving Ukraine.

Her parents, Ihor Kuchynsky and Ira Kuchynska, have also decided to stay in Ukraine to help refugees who’ve fled to the western city of Lviv, which has become a hub of humanitarian aid, or are passing through on their way to neighbouring Poland.

“(Protynyak) is so happy she has this opportunity, but feels guilty and scared because she is leaving family behind,” said Bobrowich. “She’s quite strong. Her children are having a difficult time. They’re very close with their father.”

“(Protynyak) is so happy she has this opportunity, but feels guilty and scared because she is leaving family behind.” – Brad Bobrowich

Bobrowich, his parents and his aunt travelled to Poland and Ukraine nine years ago to explore the family’s roots in those countries. Protynyak’s father was their guide and interpreter in Lviv.

The two families got to know each other and stayed in touch over the years.

While members of the Ukrainian family initially had no intention of fleeing, intense fighting near nuclear plants spurred Protynyak, 29, to take up Bobrowich’s offer, he said.

She and her children travelled to Lithuania after fleeing Ukraine. On Monday, they were preparing to travel further west to the Polish capital of Warsaw, where Protynyak must provide her biometrics (fingerprints and a photo) at a visa application centre. She will then wait for a decision on the family’s application for special visitor visas.

In an email, Protynyak told the Free Press she was packing and getting her children ready for the next leg of their almost 7,600-kilometre journey to Manitoba.

Much of her free time is devoted to being with her children or working on their visa documents or other requirements she must satisfy to travel halfway around the world.

Ottawa has vowed to fast-track the immigration process for Ukrainians fleeing the war. Visitor visas have been extended to three years, and applicants can seek an open work permit with their fee-exempt paperwork under an accelerated temporary residence pathway formally known as the Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel (CUAET) program.

When Protynyak and her children obtain their visas, Bobrowich will book their flights to Manitoba and, with help from others, prepare for their arrival.

The Ukrainians will stay in Selkirk in a home owned by his parents, Charlie and Joanne, he said.

Bobrowich’s family is going to do some minor work to the house and furnish it before the family arrives.

Amid fears the war will escalate further and go on for many months, the Protynyaks intend to stay in Manitoba until it is safe to return to their home near Lviv.

“They’re going to have so much support when they’re here,” said Bobrowich, 50, who owns Steelcity Physiotherapy & Wellness Centre in Selkirk.

“They’re (Protynyak and her children) going to have so much support when they’re here.” – Brad Bobrowich

Protynyak, who has a master’s degree in music, has already talked about her desire to organize a fundraiser for Ukrainians when she arrives in Manitoba, he said.

In Lviv, she was working at the Les Kurbas theatre, which is owned by her uncle and has been turned into a shelter for some of the millions of displaced Ukrainians, said Bobrowich.

Her husband, who works in the technology sector, has been helping women and children escape the war by driving them to the border with Poland, about 70 kilometres west of Lviv.

The city of about 725,000 people came under direct attack for the first time Friday. Russian missiles hit an aircraft repair plant near its airport, said Mayor Andriy Sadovyi in a Facebook post.

Sadovyi said there were no casualties, as the factory had already halted operations.

Much of the fighting in Ukraine has been on Russia’s fronts in the north, east and south, while the west, including Lviv, has been seen as somewhat of a safe haven for refugees, humanitarian groups and journalists.

Bobrowich, meanwhile, has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the Protynyaks’ living and travel expenses. More than $12,000 has been donated as of Monday.

Any leftover funds will be used to help other refugees, he said.

“We’re going to see a wave of people entering Canada,” said Bobrowich, whose ancestors from present-day Poland and Ukraine settled in the Interlake shortly before the turn of the 20th century.

It’s not known how many displaced Ukrainian families will travel to Manitoba.

Earlier this month, more than 700 Manitobans expressed interest when the local chapter of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress put out a call for potential hosts.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching