Viktoriia Murych

It was the 23 rd of February 2022 and I was very happy and content with my life. In fact, I was making arrangements for a holiday and preparing to relocate to Kyiv as part of my employment with the Government. That night I went to sleep thinking about my new swim suit for my trip and thinking about my new work placement. I smiled to myself. Life was great. The future looked promising. What could possibly go wrong?

The 24th of February 2022, did not meet any of my expectations. What was this that was happening in my community?! This was not part of my hopes and this was not part of my dream I had actually woke up in a nightmare.

There was a lot of enemy tanks in my home town of Romny. We are only a two hour drive from the Russian border and we were very quickly occupied by the enemy. I couldn’t believe what was happening. It seemed as if I was in an actual war. I wanted to avoid using that word, but it could not be avoided.

The News on TV showed lots of videos of military vehicles in my town. My friends were also sending me video of the enemy in our community. This was indeed WAR. To be honest, I was sure it was the last day of my life. Food and medicine disappeared from the shops very quickly. It was horrible. I soon realised that we had to evacuate before somebody tried to kill us. It was impossible at first to get away because the roads had been mined and had enemy check points.

Finally, on the 5th March I found a way through the snow covered fields with my Mother and we made our way west through Ukraine. I didn’t take much with me, just my mum and documents. I thought about my new swim suit, which looked amazing a few days earlier, and I suddenly realised that it was now nothing more than rubbish. My values had been quickly changed. Lives are much more important.

I had left everything and just run away. Between crying and reading the news, I was thinking about my life and where to go, because nowhere in Ukraine was safe from enemy attack with missiles. I was very lucky to find a sponsor and get to the United Kingdom so quickly. I couldn’t believe that my life would continue. I hadn’t lived my last day.

In happy disbelief I arrived in the country that I have read about in books. A country with great history, great architecture, great people. It really is a GREAT BRITAN. I was very happy to find employment working for Lancashire County Council as a Business Support Officer in the Refugee Integration Team. My task was to help Ukrainian people who had run away from the war and support them in their new life in the UK. It was a big challenge for me because it was necessary to quickly realise and understand the workings of British society. I have had to learn about the British political system, education, the health service, banking, public transport and so much more. There has been lots of tasks and challenges. Now is not the time for tears, because I need to show confidence and bring hope to my fellow Ukrainians.

During my first year in the UK there has been lots of good experiences. The British are very supportive people. My hosts are amazing. In my opinion, my colleagues are pure gold, and I am very happy to be a part of this healthy and loving society. There are lots of local people who try to help us and show support for Ukraine. It is amazing to see.

During this first year we have held lots of charity events to support Ukraine and we have lots more planned. I have met lots of incredible people and we work on common projects together with lots of energy. I have met members of the Royal Family in London and even made a speech in Parliament. It is a wonderful feeling to feel useful and I am completely happy to help Ukrainians here and help make society better. I couldn’t even dream about doing any of that whilst living under occupation. I was sure that I was going to die.

I have chosen Fishergate in Preston (Lancashire) as my Place of Power because I have made so many decisions there. It is a place where I have had lots of meetings with different people, it is where we planned our first events together, constantly discussed the situation in Ukraine, and it is where we have thought about how to help people. The busy street reminds me of my busy life and it helps to keep me focused on the main thing at the moment, showing compassion. A place of power is amongst people, and I am very happy to be among the British people working with them to help Ukrainians.

Lancashire has become my second home. I have lots of warm feelings for this area and the local people. And I would like to continue to write the history of Lancashire together. Thank you to everybody for offering a hand of help and friendship during my time of need.