Ukraine family working at British Ironworks Centre taken aback by 'kindness' of Shropshire people
After waking to 'terrible noise' and shooting from all sides, a Ukraine family have fled their war-torn home for the Shropshire countryside.
The family of three escaped the conflict in Ukraine and have since found work at a popular tourist attraction.
Alona Myz and her partner Kostiantyn Ladyka lived with their son in the city of Kharkov – in an apartment building just 20 km from the Russian border.
In the early hours of February 23 this year, Alona woke to "terrible noise" coming from outside her bedroom – shooting from all sides and smoke from explosions.
The 40-year-old mum was preparing to take an IT exam for her self-taught course and had been up at 3am in the morning revising.
"There was panic in the streets," she said. "We packed our things in one hour and left home, we thought we were leaving for a week at most.
"We went to the Kharkov region to the village of my husband's father. We would have stayed there for two weeks. But the situation in Kharkov only worsened."
As months passed, Alona and her family decided to go West to seek refuge, and were later taken in by a farming family in Shropshire who wishes to remain anonymous.
The family commented on how peaceful Shropshire was and how calm and quiet the people were, whilst being taken aback by the kindness and warmth of the local community of Shotatton and the surrounding areas.
Despite speaking limited English, they were eager to find work so they could give back to their hosts for the generosity they had provided.
The team at the British Ironwork Centre in Oswestry stepped in to help them settle and found them work around the centre which was suitable for their skills.
While the family are now relocating to Telford, Clive Knowles – Chair of the British Ironworks Centre – confirmed that the family will hopefully be helping out the centre with collections for much needed items in Ukraine.
He said: “The Ukrainian people arriving here need us all to go the extra mile to assist them.
"In this fragile world, any country could potentially find itself within the same awful position.
"As a society, there is so much we can do to assist those who need it most.”
Alona said she still keeps in touch with her friend who has moved into their home in Kharkov, after his own house was subject to relentless shelling.
"We call each other every day," Alona said. "We hear that every night our city is being bombed more and more fiercely.
"In some areas of the city alarm sirens sound almost around the clock with short breaks. Bombs fall on schools, museums, parks, hospitals, houses– even just on the roadway."
Alona gave her thanks to Clive and the team for the support they have provided.
