Ukrainian students in Connecticut looking at ways to help family and friends back home

HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) – Ukrainians in Connecticut continue to watch from afar.

This includes students who came over for college and are now praying for their families’ safety.

It’s been all they can think about, watching the images and talking with friends and family back home.

Some worry about if they’ll ever be able to go back home.

“For me it’s just very heartbreaking that I’m 6,000 miles away right now,” said Yuliia Kulchytska, a sophomore at Wesleyan University.

Kulchytska came to Connecticut two years ago to go to college, getting a scholarship to attend Wesleyan University.

Two days ago, her world was flipped upside down after Russia invaded her home country of Ukraine.

All she can do is think about her family.

“Just in the morning there was an air raid siren going on and my small sister she would call me and say oh Julia, I’m afraid I’ll never see you again,” she said.

She initially wanted to go home but realized she can be more helpful here by raising money and awareness.

Friday she was part of a panel, translating as college students in Ukraine talked with students at Wesleyan.

“Everybody in Ukraine is looking for an outlet to express how their feeling about this,” said Katja Pylyschenko Kolcio, Associate Professor at Wesleyan University.

Friday’s event was the first of three discussions already planned before Wednesday’s invasion.

Some faculty looked to combat Russian misinformation.

The Ukrainian students talked about what they’ve seen.

“Military aircraft that basically destroy civilian buildings, that shoots kindergartens, that shoots schools, that shoot our hospitals,” said Yuri Lamikovskyy a student in Ukraine.

They said a Ukrainian request for troops would like further tensions with Russia.

They did ask for more severe sanctions, as well as money and military supplies.

“Dictatorships and autocracies, they stop only when they are stopped,” said Oleksii Diatlov of Ukraine.

While Kulchytska is able to find ways to help, she’s worried about when she’ll be able to see her family again.

“I am very concerned I’ll never be able to return,” she said.

Students at colleges all over Connecticut are looking for ways to act.

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