On that February morning when Russian forces invaded Ukraine, the Bezhenar family…. father Alexander, mother Maria, grandmother NIna, and daughters 17-year-old Eleanor, 15-year-old Anhelina and 10-year-old Agnessa…. had the most important family meeting one can imagine.
There was no time to lose, not a single minute.
Rockets had exploded about five miles away, and that was close enough thank you.
All Alexander and Maria cared about was to protect their daughters at any and all costs, and decided there and then to abandon their lives and their Odessa home and flee, whilst all were still safe and sound.
They left everything behind that wasn’t on their back or in their hands.
Which included Agnessa’s beloved cat, Arsenii, who was given to the family members who chose to stay.
They made it to Bucharest, Romania, where they were welcomed, and within a few weeks, they were told that they had a host and sponsor in the Bay area of California in the United States.
Imagine their relief.
Imagine their host, Geoffrey Peters.
Said Geoffrey, “When the invasion happened I felt like we needed to do something to help people.”
Geoffrey knew his son was trying to rent his second home, and proposed to him if he would consider allowing a Ukrainian family to seek refuge in the home.
Maria sent an email saying we’ve been matched and we have a family of six,” Peters said. “And so I went to my son and I said instead of renting this house, which he was planning on doing, would you be willing to donate it for two years?”
His son didn’t hesitate.
When the family made it to Sonoma County, they had a beautiful home that was void of furnishings.
That’s when the people of the small city of Cloverdale stepped up.
“Everybody pitched in and they furnished the entire house. They started donating money. They donated food. They donated gas cards, they donated gift cards. Another person found out that the girls are very musically oriented so they donated the piano.”
But there was one thing missing that truly made their house a home, and their family, complete.
And that’s where flight attendant Dee Harnish enters the chat.
She met the family on their flight to San Francisco and learned of their story, and when Agnessa mentioned her cat left behind, Dee felt it deep and wanted to stay in touch with the family.
Said Dee, "I once left Germany and I know what it's like to go to another country and not know anyone or anywhere and I just felt this sense of connection with her. I messaged her and said, 'So how are you? How's America treating you, is everything ok?' And she said, 'Yes, everything is good. Except my youngest daughter wants to go home. She cries every day because she's missing her cat.' "She missed sleeping with her cat and she missed hugging him, she missed everything about the cat because she had grown up with him."
Which everyone here can perfectly relate to.
Dee shared the news with her flight attendant friend, Caroline Viola, who also rescues animals.
“She just sent me a text and asked if there was anything I could do to help with that huge request,” said Caroline.
"And all I could think of was 'My God, we got a war-torn country here, and you want me to get a cat out of Ukraine?'"
Hawaii- based Caroline contacted Houston- based Angelica Chavez-Etchechury, another animal rescuer.
"And I said, 'Well if you get that cat out of Ukraine, that's a piece of cake.' You know, get that cat back. The issue was to get him out of Ukraine," said Chavez-Etchechury. Driven by the glimmer of hope that had presented itself, Bezhenar's brother-in-law—who was watching the cat in Ukraine—laid the groundwork for the rescue. He took Arsenii on his motorcycle across the Ukraine border to Moldova where he passed the feline to a driver, who took him and a refugee family to Romania. Arsenii spent about a month with a family in Bucharest while the rest of the rescue plan fell into place. It was at this point that Agnessa was finally informed she might soon be reunited with her beloved cat. "So I say, 'Ok, let's pray but I cannot promise that it can happen,'" Bezhenar recounted. "She was happy and she says, 'He will come. He will definitely come. Just believe.'"
Animal rescuer Mimi Kate, who was on vacation in Greece, cut her trip short to pick up Arsenii in Bucharest and bring him home. However, his Ukrainian documents wouldn't allow Arsenii on a flight from Romania. "All the documents must be checked for him in Romania because he just, moved from the country which is not European Union," Bezhenar said. Finally, a tuk-tuk driver volunteered to help and after getting his documents in order, the cat finally made his way to Athens, followed by Montreal and then Kate's home in Seattle before he reunited with Agnessa at San Francisco International Airport late last month.
There were tears and smiles, and laughter and hugs and balloons and relief at San Francisco International Airport when Agnessa was finally reunited with her warm fuzzy friend.
Just believe.
Geoffrey wants others to know what hosting a refugee family can mean to a community.
Cloverdale gave this family a lot, but Cloverdale got a lot back.
“The whole community has learned a few lessons. They learned about Ukraine and about the situation with refugees in Ukraine, but they also learned how to be a community,” he said.
The family is working on their English and plan to move forward with their new lives as Americans.
The older girls are going to school and are learning to drive.
Cloverdale and the Peter’s family, and Dee and Angelica and Mimi and Caroline and Kate and so many others made this a reality, and helped make a house a home.
Said Maria, "When Arsenii is with us, it's like home is with us. Like part of our home is with us."
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As some here may remember, I have been hosting an Afghan family of five, and the growth and warmth and gratitude I have found and gained is hard to adequately describe.
If you have the ability and/or the circumstance and/or the means in whatever context, please consider hosting or sponsoring or welcoming a refugee, be it an individual, a couple or a family.
If so inclined, please shoot me a kosmail, and I’ll help with information and links.
Here’s a very very good place to start. ukraine.welcome.us/…
If so inclined to help this deserving family, please consider it here. www.gofundme.com/…
Giving shelter from the storm.
