The war in Ukraine is now in its third year and the impact of Russia’s invasion and ongoing attacks continue to be felt throughout the country. One family that fled Kharkiv has shared how ORT has aided their resettlement in Spain.
At the start of the war in 2022, several ORT schools in Europe, as well as ORT-affiliated schools, took in Ukrainian refugees.
Teenager Milada and her parents, Olga and Vadim, escaped terrifying bombardment in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. They now live in Barcelona, Spain, and Milada – now aged 15 – was accepted into ORT’s affiliate school, Colegio Hatikva, the only Jewish school in Barcelona. The support from the school community has been invaluable, the family says.
“The help from ORT has been wonderful,” Vadim says. “The teachers at Milada’s new school are very kind and understand our situation. We are very grateful for the good relationship we have with them.”
In February, ORT approved a grant for Colegio Hatikva for the 2024/2025 academic year to support their Ukrainian refugee pupils. It is the third such grant to the school since 2022 when Ukrainians began to arrive in Spain.
Terror, Anxiety – then Safety
Kharkiv, in northeastern Ukraine, has been under heavy bombardment since early in the war. It was home to Milada’s family, as well as Olga’s parents and Olga’s sister and her two children. Being only 40km from the Russian border, the family were increasingly aware of their perilous situation.
“At the start of the war I lost my job and had no hope. Every day there was less and less food and there was nowhere to get money – the ATMs didn’t work. The shops were open, then they weren’t, and, in any case, the queues were crazy. There have been periods without electricity,” recalls Vadim.
“At first, we would run to the basement when the sirens went off; then, we stopped running. But, one day, a shell exploded in the neighbour’s garden. The walls were shaking.”
Vadim told Olga that many people were leaving and suggested she went with Milada to Barcelona, where one of his cousins lived. They were aware that Spain had taken in many refugees from Ukraine and Vadim’s cousin had also offered to help them.
“It wasn’t easy. They were crying – they didn’t want to leave, especially because my wife’s mother, who is 70 and works as a nurse, was adamant that she herself was staying.”
Milada recalls: “It was very hard to leave my father and grandmother because we didn’t know what would happen to them or when we would see each other again. I still have not seen my grandmother since we left.”
Olga and Milada left Kharkiv in early March on an arduous train journey across Europe, often standing for 24 hours at a time in carriages that were packed beyond capacity.
Vadim stayed in Kharkiv for two months but, after buildings within 50 metres of his home were attacked, he decided to leave. By May he also reached Spain.
Warm and Welcoming
Milada, who had attended a Jewish school in Kharkiv, was initially enrolled in a Catalan school for around three months. She found the language extremely difficult to learn and the family says the school environment was not supportive.
“They just put me in a classroom. I sat there and didn’t understand anything, everything was in Catalan,” she recalls.
Vadim adds: “They didn’t pay her any attention; they didn’t speak to her or try to teach her Spanish or Catalan. They didn’t try to involve her in the education process, and they didn’t seem to care if she was at school – sometimes they even told her not to come in.”
The family, who had attended synagogue in Kharkiv for the festivals, was helped by Barcelona’s Beit Shalom synagogue and the wider Jewish community.
The family in Barcelona
“Thanks to ORT, we were offered the chance to enroll Milada in Colegio Hatikva. Everyone was – and is – so warm and welcoming and helped her,” explains Vadim. “The teachers are all professionals. They are very responsive and kind, and they treat us humanely; they understand our situation.”
Following intensive Spanish lessons, within two months Milada had begun to speak the language and was able to move on to learn other subjects.
“When I came to school for the first time, I made friends with a girl from Spain. Thanks to her, I got to know Spain, but then she left,” Milada says. “Then a new girl came, who is Ukrainian – we’re still in touch.”
Vadim adds: “It was hard at first for her – it’s still not easy – but we are extremely grateful to ORT. Staff at Colegio Hatikva constantly told her to talk to someone, constantly invited her places – in general, they were very attentive. They also provide financial support so Milada can go on school trips. The school is wonderful and we’re very happy.”
Milada is now choosing the subjects for her final school years. “I want to become an interior designer. It’s difficult and dangerous at the moment in Ukraine. I want to live and study here in Spain.”
It is hard for the family to consider the future when there are so many unknowns, and they are also worried about Olga’s mother’s situation. “Will our apartment remain intact? Will there be a place to return to? When will the war end? How will it end? Will Kharkiv be completely destroyed?” asks Vadim. “So far, we are in a state of complete uncertainty. I would like to return – it is my home country.”
With the support of ORT’s donors around the world, many families like Vadim’s have found hope and the opportunity to start a new chapter, even if they also share the desire to one day return home.
