WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER 7, 2022
Wairarapa’s locally owned community newspaper
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Liubov’s journey from Ukraine to Carterton:
‘You saved ‘You saved our Mum’s life’
Erin Kavanagh-Hall
erin.kavanagh-hall@age.co.nz
Liubov Yelisieieva has survived relentless shelling attacks on her home, been driven into a hail of bullets while fleeing to safety, and spent several weeks sheltering in an underground train station. Now, she’s starting a new life in Carterton – thanks to an outpouring of aroha and generosity from the Wairarapa
community. Liubov, a retired teacher, spent most of her life in a small town outside Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine – less than 10km from the Russian border. When Russia first launched its invasion of Ukraine eight months ago, her village was one of the first in the firing line — and the 73-yearold became a prisoner in her apartment, as mortar shells rained down outside her window.
Half a world away in Carterton, son and daughter-in-law Vlad and Christine Eliseev watched in horror as
had made it through the night. Anxiety gave way to action: With support from their networks
“She woke up to the sound of bombs going o˜ . She called us at 5am in an absolute panic.”
the war unfolded on their TV screens – and waited on tenterhooks for Liubov’s next phone call, reassuring them she
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in Ukraine, Vlad and Christine were able to help Liubov escape, under cover of darkness, across the border into Poland –
and, eventually, make the long journey to safety in Aotearoa. Liubov’s evacuation was not only fraught with potential danger, but came with a heavy price tag: close to $20,000 NZ for transport and accommodation, including Vlad’s flights to Europe to meet his mother, and transport for the volunteers accompanying her out of Ukraine. In April, Vlad and
Christine set up a Givealittle page to help cover the costs – and were “astonished” to see the donations and loving messages flooding in from the community. Thanks to the kindness of both friends and strangers, and some extra support from local businesses – including a quiz night hosted by Kainga Café in Carterton – the couple were able to Continued on page 4
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