A family of four is settling into their new life after fleeing the war in Ukraine. With the help of their host family in Cambridge, they are looking forward to making a new start.
Iryna Maksymov, her husband Ihor, and their two teenage boys, 14-year-old Alex and Artem, 18, left everything when they fled their home under Russian attacks.
Iryna says her family feels safe for the first time in a long time.
“Meeting this family, it is through them that we can see how our life will develop here,” Iryna said of her host family, Dan and Dawn Coates.
“These wonderful people have opened their doors to us.”
Dan Coates said he and his wife felt compelled to help after seeing the news about what was happening in Ukraine.
“For us, it was just a natural response. In the past 10 years, we’ve hosted international students. This of course is different, with different dynamics. It’s a family unit,” Coates said.
“The motivation was watching the nightly news and seeing how deplorable and despicable the situation was in Ukraine. We figured well, what can we do to help?”
Dan and Dawn Coates contacted the Ukrainian Canada Council and put their name on the list to be a possible host but did not hear back.
“So, we looked for a Ukrainian church in the area and they led us to the newly formed volunteer group, Waterloo Region Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis,” Coates said.
“We put our name on the list. We have three bedrooms, and we are partial empty-nesters so, we thought we could help.”
Iryna Maksymov said her family had difficulties before arriving in Canada.
“It was stressful, not knowing what to do and where to go,” she said.
“Our son is a student who was on his way to study at Conestoga College. We thought well, let’s head that way, but we didn’t know how to get there or where we would live.”
Ihor said after leaving Ukraine on Feb. 27, the trip to Canada lasted for about two months before arriving in Cambridge.
“But this family delved into our problems to help us, people from a distant country," Ihor said.
The Waterloo Region Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis helps families like the Maksymovs settle in Waterloo Region.
The organization consists of a group of residents who prepare, support and offer resources to those displaced and are fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.
“Ukrainians are coming here with work visas, but they don’t have refugee status and they are not entitled to benefits. So, they are not getting any money from the government,” Coates said.
“Recently, they have been able to sign up for OHIP so that’s good news. But there is still a long way to go.”
Once families arrive, the Waterloo Region Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis provides donations of clothes, school supplies and hygiene kits.
Stephane Goertz began the Waterloo Region Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis and says that the biggest need is finding host families.
Goertz says there are 12 families coming to Waterloo Region over the next few days, with many more due to arrive in the following weeks.
“It could be a single parent, an elderly person, to a whole family. It’s all over. For anyone interested in hosting a family, there is a form on our website,” Goertz said.
Goertz says there are about 33 families in Waterloo Region currently hosting Ukrainians and about a third of host families reside in Cambridge.
“But this is a different and unique process of having Ukrainians coming into Canada. It is so different from the normal refugee process, so we have needed to adapt,” Goertz said.
“Our housing team stays connected with the people who offer their homes and provides help with obtaining OHIP, driver’s licences and services at the YMCA and at the K-W Multicultural Centre,” Goertz said.
“The amount of community support host families receive from neighbours, friends, family, and employers, has been really overwhelming,” Goertz said.
But, Goertz says, there is a desperate need for more host families.
"If anyone has a spare room in their house, maybe a secondary unit, or maybe a senior struggling and living on their own, they can reach out to us," Goertz said. "What we are doing is connecting people and building relationships.”
It has been six weeks since the Maksymov Family came to live in the Coates household.
“We’ve settled in, and they too have settled in nicely,” said Coates, who also has two adult sons.
“One of my sons is living in Ottawa. The other lives here with us, so he has been part of this experience also,” Coates said.
The Coates family also have a Labradoodle dog.
“The youngest boy, Alex, plays with him a lot. Pets can help people through stressful times and comfort them.”
Back in Ukraine, Alex spent a lot of time with horses.
“Through different connections, I found someone who has horses and wanted Alex to help groom and spend time with them. That has also added a lot of comfort for him,” Coates said.
Iryna and Ihor are taking English lessons set up by the YMCA Immigration Services and Ihor has recently secured a job as a roofer for the time being.
“Alex is attending Galt Collegiate which is another way he can learn English and meet other people. The oldest son, Artem, was actually on his way to attend Conestoga College even before the war broke out. His level of English is high, and that has been extremely helpful,” Coates said.
“If anybody is asking themselves, what can I do to help? There are other ways as well as opening up your home. There are many different ways to help through Waterloo Region Grassroots Response for the Ukrainian Crisis by helping drive Ukrainian newcomers to appointments, or joining a resource team. There are all sorts of ways people can help out.”
As for worry over friends and family back home, Coates says he tries not to talk to the family about it.
“We want them to focus on the future and we want to help them get there,” he said.
“It’s been wonderful on both sides and with no issues. There’s some miscommunication, but nothing that Google Translate can’t solve. And my wife Dawn and Iryna, have really bonded. It’s all worked out.”
Coates says he highly suggests that if anyone is toying with the idea of becoming a host family, to take a chance for a month, two or three.
“What you receive in return, is much more than what you give out,” Coates said.
Both families agree, this is a lifelong friendship in the making.
“We understand that this must be difficult for them. They have brought us into their home. We do not know how to express out gratitude to them,” Iryna said.
“Thanks to this family, we began to smile, laugh and live again.”
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