"We hid for a week. Rockets exploded near us. We didn't have a bomb shelter, and the children were hiding under a table."
It loses some of its emotion when it comes through Google Translate, because they don’t speak English. But, it’s been an incredibly difficult year for the Kurta family. Yulia Kurta says the war forced her, her husband, and their three kids the to flee their home in Ukraine.
"Russia's attack was a shock for us," said Kurta. "We hid for a week, but couldn't stand it. We left in March."
The family lost everything, relying on the goodwill of charities and churches, and ending up in France. In January, they finally made it to the United States with the help of a sponsor in North Carolina.
Today, they are in a home of a Thousand Oaks family, which is temporarily hosting them. Cheri Phoenix and her husband John are hosting the Kurta family.
Speaking through Google Translate, Yulia Kurta says aside from not having a home, it’s hard for the family knowing that their relatives are still in Ukraine, living in harm’s way.
"We're in touch every day, but it's hard to explain. It's very scary," she said.
It’s been especially hard for the kids. 14-year-old Marharta Kurta tries to avoid the subject of war with her little brother and sister.
"We don't talk about the war to my brother and sister. Here, we feel safe," she said.
The parents say their kids have been remarkably resilient as they moved from place to place. Seva, the little boy, says he’s made some big and little discoveries about America, like the simple joy of an apple.
Phoenix says the big problem now is what happens next. The family has legal refugee status, but virtually nothing else They'll get $1900 a month for the next few months from a refugee relief fund. But, she says they need to raise at least $10,000 to get them into a home.
The family had a nice home in Ukraine. Andrii Kurtas had an auto repair business, and is looking for a job doing that or in construction. But, when bombs started landing in their community, and air raid warnings blared day and night, they decided the safety of their children came first.
Phoenix is trying to rally support to help the family through though a GoFundMe page.
