“I LEFT hospital in my city, Mariupol, on crutches,” says Oksana Halchenko. “By luck, I made it to another small town but which was still under the Russian occupation. I had no documents. I was seeing fear in people’s eyes who were escaping the bombs in Mariupol.
“A woman gave me a small soup, tea and bread. I was very hungry. But I couldn’t eat. I was crying. I saw myself in a new way…‘I am a homeless person.’ I had had a vivid life. Now I was like nothing. And it was not a fact that I would rise again.”
Oksana has told of her experiences of surviving in hospital during the Russian invasion and then the occupation of her hometown elsewhere. How she went into hospital with a broken foot just two days before the invasion, but became sick as bombs blew out the windows of the hospital and cut off the water and energy. How, eventually, after summoning the courage to challenge the occupiers, she was allowed to leave the hospital - even as Russian soldiers occupied the building - and escaped Mariupol, leaving her home, property, friends and family behind.
Her aim was to get to England simply because an English friend who used to visit Mariupol for business had tracked her down online. “He wanted to know if I was still alive and if yes, to inform me about UK government program.”
It was a daunting prospect to leave for another country. Oksana had visited London on two brief occasions, in 1995 for an educational program and in 2006 for short job contract. But, after a lengthy waiting period as the Russians advanced, she was pleased to be flown into Newcastle Airport in October 2022. There she was picked up and driven to Marske and the next day met Andrew Parker, an officer at Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council who continues to take a leading role in the authority’s Homes for Ukraine Scheme. “He has been heroic to me and others,” says Oksana.
She was placed with a host and soon took strength from meeting fellow Ukrainian refugees, especially in the first year in Saltburn Cricket Club. “We would bring food,” she remembers, “it was good to feel each other’s shoulders, to be together.”
Oksana had the experience of living two hosts in two homes during a year in Marske. “They opened their doors to a stranger, an amazing thing to do,” said a grateful Oksana. “I heard from them that I must settle first, only then I could feel a life again. And that was right. Especially after such an interesting and successful life in Ukraine - I was an Assistant Director at the Palace of Culture in Mariupol for 18 years. Now I had nothing.”
Oksana started to make good friends in the English community. “I am very grateful for the support of Yorkshire people I have met,” she said. “Even some wonderful one just inspired me and gave me real understanding that I am in right way.”
After a struggle, Oksana managed to obtain recognition in the UK for her Ukrainian degree in International Economics and studied English, Maths and IT at Redcar and Cleveland College. These qualifications opened up an opportunity for Oksana to gain work with Redcar and Cleveland Voluntary Development Agency. And later, after even perseverance, she found full-time employment. Today, she is an apprentice Business Administrator at Rediscover Redcar, a resource managed by the council’s business engagement team which liaises with local businesses, investors and residents to help attract investment and transform the town as part of the Redcar Town Deal project.
And she has her own home in East Cleveland. “I was not that homeless person anymore,” says Oksana with emotion. “I have my own front door. My own space once again - even I still keep a key from my past life.”
Oksana hopes “very much” to have the opportunity to continue her life in our corner of England, which she has started to regard as her home. “I feel as if I have a second life here. I am happy. Now, I want to be helpful to this area and do my bit to see it prosper.”