I never thought I’d leave my home in Kyiv with my young daughter, especially not to a place as far away as California. Yet, I did. I never thought I would be accepted to pursue my degree at UC Berkeley. Yet, I was.
When the war in Ukraine began, I knew I had to leave for the safety of myself and my daughter. It was a painful decision, but the thought of something terrible happening to us was too scary to face. My daughter was four years old then, and I knew I had to make a move to better her life. At this time, I set a goal for myself to leave Ukraine and do my best to get to America and apply for asylum.
I put everything I thought I would need into two backpacks, picked up my daughter, and we fled for our lives. We made our way to Warsaw, Poland, and then flew to Mexico. I was able to find temporary housing during our journey through the app CouchSurfing and met tremendously generous people who were willing to help us. On March 25, 2022, former United States President Joe Biden opened humanitarian parole for Ukrainians, and we crossed the border into San Diego, California. I couldn’t believe our luck. Once we were safely in the United States, I met with a lawyer who helped me complete the paperwork to apply for asylum.
We were fortunate enough to find a host family through Nova Ukraine, an organization that supports refugees from Ukraine, in San Francisco. My first host family was Kelly & Woodson Martin — they supported us during our first year in California and encouraged me to continue my education. I’m immensely grateful to the Martins and now to our current host family, Penny and Greg Gallo. Here, I could turn my attention to attending Sequoia Adult School to better my English, and my daughter was offered a scholarship to attend preschool. I finally felt like we were settled.
After completing my studies at Sequoia, I enrolled at Cañada College in Redwood City. It was there that a counselor told me about WANDA and encouraged me to apply. At first, I thought it was just another housing support organization, like HIP Housing, but when I called and talked to WANDA’s Director of Programs Jennifer Advani, I learned that it was so much more.
Once I was accepted into WANDA’s program, I was able to learn how to make a budget and how to navigate the American banking system. This was a huge opportunity for me because I am so new to this country. I didn’t know what a 529 account or a 401(k) was. During the program, I was able to save every month, and WANDA matched it. The encouragement and financial education I received from WANDA helped me realize that I can do this. I can save, live within our means, and create a habit that will help us in the long run. I now repeat this to myself all the time: Before I spend, I have to save.
The online courses were different each month and were presented by different speakers with different backgrounds. I could tell that each speaker really did want to help us. The connections I have made with the other moms and faculty give me confidence that I will be able to have support no matter what we have to face. I know I can reach out to them and they will try to help me.
The community WANDA provides shows me that even if you were born and raised in America, you can still face a lot of issues, especially as a single mother. Life can be wild and unpredictable, even if you don’t have a war in your country.
WANDA helped me focus on a goal for myself. I decided to continue my education and invest in my daughter’s future by opening an account for her, too. Between courses at Cañada College and College of San Mateo (CSM), I was able to finish my associate’s degree in two years, and I’m proud to say that I have been accepted into every four-year university I applied to. At first, I couldn’t imagine even applying to these schools, and now I’m being accepted. This realization and validation grew my confidence.
In two years, I hope to earn my degree in Film and Digital Media from UC Berkeley. While at CSM, I joined a drone club, and I am studying to earn my license to become a pilot for unmanned aircraft. This field is new and interesting to me, and I hope to learn more at UC Berkeley by joining their Drone Club. Maybe with this knowledge, I can use unmanned aircraft to film or create content for social media, or maybe I’ll become a part of the film industry and be involved in video production.
Despite fleeing my home with my young daughter, learning a new language, and trying to find safe housing for us, I’m taking steps to handle my life and figure out how to make it better for us. I had to rebuild my life from zero when I arrived in the United States with no family and no experience, but WANDA has offered me connections that support a better future for us. Little by little, I’m reaching goals that I never thought were possible.