HOUSTON – Anna Hlukhotarenko spends her days in Houston glued to her phone, communicating with friends home in Ukraine and her parents who were taken in as refugees by the Romanian government.
“My parents said they were finally able to sleep once they made it to Romania,” Hlukhotarenko said.
Hlukhotarenko fled Kyiv with her 5-year-old son Alex two days before Russian troops invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. The stamps on their passports mark their journey, which first brought them to Istanbul before flying to Houston in March.
Since then, Hlukhotarenko said her son hasn’t stopped asking about his friends.
“Like all kids, he wants to return to his friends in kindergarten,” she said.
But he can’t. Hlukhotarenko said they exchange video messages with friends and most of them have escaped the war, too.
While the mother and son are safe in the U.S., Hlukhotarenko worries about her parents who are in Romania, as well as her friends who remain in Kyiv.
“My mom has cancer. I want her to see a doctor in Romania,” she said, adding while she’s thankful the Romanian government opened its doors, that access to food, clothing and other everyday essentials is much needed.
As for Kyiv, Hlukhotarenko expressed temporary relief now that Russian troops have pulled back. She said she speaks almost daily with a friend who remained in the city and told her people have begun to go outside again.
“They are not afraid so much as it was several days ago,” said Hlukhotarenko, who fears that it’s temporary. “Each night in my dreams, I see people from Kyiv, which I knew - who were my neighbors in Kyiv,” she said. “I can imagine their fear.”
Hlukhotarenko hopes other countries in Europe will open their borders because she fears her home won’t rise from ruin anytime soon.
“Even my friends who are staying in Kyiv, they’re really scared to leave Kyiv,” she expressed.
Hlukhotarenko said she is helping her elderly parents with everyday needs and has established a GoFundMe account to help them cover costs as they yearn for the day they can return home.
“My parents dream of returning to their home and I dream of going back to see them,” she said.