Families from Ukraine who fled to safety in Perth and Kinross have come together with local communities this week to mark the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of their country.
Today (February 24) marks one year on since the start of Russia president Vladimir Putin’s ongoing war against the eastern European nation and its people.
Millions of Ukrainians were forced to leave their homes, some of whom have found shelter in Perth and Kinross, and tens of thousands of people have died.
A total of 392 families have been displaced to the county from Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict in what is one of the largest displacement crises in the world.
Olha Nosova-Yelisieieva (36), from Cherkasy, attended the gathering at Tay Street having moved to Scone last May with her 10-year-old son and her mother.
“It is pretty hard right now not just for me but for all Ukrainians I speak with,” she said.
“When the war started in Ukraine I had a double amount of stress because that same day my dad had an operation on his heart.
“Lots of people just wanted to leave the country and went on the road to the border.
“I could not leave at first because of my dad’s condition in hospital. Then we tried to leave the country, which was not easy and everyone was panicking.”
After months of endeavour, art teacher Olha and her family finally made it to Perthshire but her father chose to stay in Ukraine to aid the military in their attempts to hold off Russian forces.
“My father is fine now. We made all the documents for him to come here but he did not want to because he wanted to help the military with aid even though he is not in the military,” she added.
“Of course I want to go back to Ukraine as I have a home there and my dog is still there, my dad is still there. But for now it is too dangerous and we understand we should take our opportunities here and live our lives.”
The sombre anniversary of the start of the war is being marked locally, including a special rally at St Paul’s Square in Perth this evening with Ukrainians and Scottish locals coming together.
Ukrainian families also gathered at the viewpoint in Tay Street on Tuesday with Perth and Kinross councillors.
Smeaton’s Bridge, over the River Tay in Perth, and St Paul’s will also be lit in the colours of the Ukrainian flag as a show of support.
Olha, who has organised weekly gatherings in Perth for Ukrainian people to get together, was full of praise for the support her family has received since their arrival.
“The support here has been huge from the very start – very warm-hearted,” she added.
“For example my son’s school prepares school work in Ukrainian for him as he did not know English very well. Now he speaks very good English.
“My friend and sponsor helped me with all necessary documents and visiting doctors.
“I applied for a course at college which has helped Ukrainians so much, who also helped me find a job.”
Fellow Ukrainian Iryna Gyrenko came to Scotland alone last July, with her brother still in Ukraine playing a vital role.
She said: “My mum and my older brother are still there and he is an important person to help if something happens with the power, like when a few months ago Russia attacked the electrical grid.
“He works for the power company to keep the electrical grid on and helps fix it. And so my mum did not want to leave my brother behind.”
Iryna said she did not think the war would last as long as it has, adding: “When the war started I think it will last maybe four months and then stop. But it has not and it is a surprise this has happened in my lifetime.
“Putin knows what he is doing and so you realise it is not just one year but maybe two or more years.
“There has been very big support from the government and there are very good people here.”
Iryna said she lived in “hope” that she could return to her country and see her family again one day.
Strathallan ward councillor Steven Carr founded the Dnipro Kids charity after a football trip to the city in 2005 and led the rescue of children from orphanages in Dnipro.
He also returned to the war-torn country in January and has been a frontline supporter of those displaced to Scotland and Perth and Kinross as a result of the conflict.
“The most worrying thing is that there does not look to be an end to anything anytime soon,” he said.
“I have been involved with Ukrainians throughout Scotland and Perth and Kinross has been absolutely superb in their response of support for Ukraine.”
