Hanna's Story

“I have a secret. Every morning when I go to the mirror—no matter what is happening that day—I say to myself, ‘Everything is amazing, wonderful, fantastic.’ If you say that three times per day, your life will be amazing, wonderful and fantastic,” says Hanna, a Ukranian refugee and Settlement Specialist with the YMCA.  

Even during the darkest days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, you will find Hanna with a smile on her face and an energy that inspires everyone around her.  

And she has an inspiring story to tell. When Hanna woke up to the sounds of bombing on February 24th, 2022, she says she didn’t feel panic, but rather asked herself a question...what happens now?  

She quickly discovered all the airports across her home country had been destroyed. Russia had invaded Ukraine and was making it difficult for civilians to leave. But Hanna didn’t want to leave, at least, not at first.  

“I felt as though I would betray my husband,” says Hanna. She explains her husband is an IT specialist who stayed behind in the central city of Dnipro to help keep Ukrainians connected to each other and the rest of the world during the conflict.  

Hanna says while she didn’t want to leave her husband or her home, they were both very aware of the unpredictability of their situation. “Nobody knew what was next. We were afraid of waking up in a different—or worse—situation, or possibly never waking up,” says Hanna.

“It was a last-minute decision. One night I told my two boys that we would go to the train tomorrow. I didn’t know where we would go, but I told them there is a train and we will go to the place the train takes us,” says Hanna.  

On March 4, 2022, Hanna and her two sons—who were just 8 and 15 at the time—began the long, unpredictable journey from Lviv, Ukraine to Canada.  

“I just took everything step by step,” says Hanna. “There was no plan. My kids would ask me, ‘What is happening tomorrow?’ and I would tell them what the next step was, and I told them once we get to that step, we will discuss the next one.”  

Hanna says during this journey her boys grew up. “They were absolute heroes; I saw them as men. They weren’t kids, they were men, I could rely on them.”  

Finally settling in Hamilton with some sense of normalcy, Hanna says she has been surrounded by miracles, especially the miracle that she says brought her to the YMCA. Having seen the word ‘employment’ online, Hanna clicked, filled out a few forms and was soon invited to meet with YMCA’s employment services. From there she found a part-time job with Interpretation and Translation Services of Hamilton (ITS Hamilton). After working with ITS for a few months, Hanna was recommended to the YMCA as someone who spoke Ukrainian and would be able to help Ukrainian refugees coming to the city. Hanna was interviewed and started working with the YMCA.

“It was a miracle,” says Hanna.  

When it comes to her sons, Hanna talks about another miracle. Both her children practiced judo and played chess in Ukraine, and just by happenstance, they were able to get into a judo club in Hamilton, and her oldest son now plays chess at the Canadian Chess Federation’s Hamilton Chapter.  

“If they had not been able to play chess or do judo, they would have been more stressed. But chess and judo, friendly people around them and friendly staff at school, it helped a lot, so they know that everything is fine, that they are okay,” says Hanna.  

Now, sitting on the other side of the desk as a Settlement Specialist with the YMCA, Hanna says it feels amazing to help others who are going through a similar experience, “I know what it is like to flee the war, so I can help other Ukrainians.”  

The YMCA has helped over 600 Ukrainians since March 2022, with 170 of them being helped by Hanna directly.  

Hanna says she is proud to be part of the YMCA team and is immensely grateful for the life she has been able to build here, “I like the YMCA and I love Canada. Thank you for being with me, thank you for being my colleagues and friends. I love you.”