St. Louis duo continues to help Ukrainian refugees before and after war started
By Deion Broxton
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ST. LOUIS, Missouri (KMOV) — Ukrainian refugees are still fleeing to the St. Louis region because of the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Isabella Gipkhin and Eugene Koblents have been taking in Europeans long before Russian invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Once the war started, the duo have helped at least a dozen refugees.
In March 2022, the two housed an Ukrainian woman and her child in their Olivette home. The child got surgery in St. Louis for her cerebral palsy before heading back to Europe.
“They lived in our house for probably three or four weeks,” Gipkhin said. “I don’t know how many–maybe 14–15 we helped here.”
Last year, Gipkhin and Koblents took in Valeria Yadlovska and her son for two months. Yadlovska’s son also got surgery in St. Louis for cerebral palsy. Yadlovksa, her son and husband now live in an apartment complex in Olivette. They left their families in Ukraine.
“So hard right now in Ukraine,” Yadlovska said. “They say I must stay here. Of course, I want to go home. My home is Ukraine, but I don’t know.”
Ukrainian refugees have been able to stay in the U.S. for up to two years by filling out forms with the federal government’s Uniting for Ukraine program.
“They can work here. They can buy car. They can get driver license,” Gipkhin added.
On Friday, U.S. officials announced $2 billion will go to support Ukraine. The total since the war started is now $32 billion.
“I can only repeat something told by Winston Churchill,” Koblents said. “Americans do right things after they try to do everything, and do it little slow.”
Also on Friday, Poland delivered the first German Leopard tanks to Ukraine forces.
According to the International Institute of St. Louis, an estimated 517 applications for Ukrainians to resettle in the St. Louis area have been approved. Of that, the institute believes 397 are already in the region.
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