Iryna Britanova-Listratenko had heard of Ireland through her love of U2 but knew little else about the country before arriving here on Saturday.
“We travelled for five days to get here – it was a sudden decision. I was looking for the opportunity to go to an English-speaking country and I heard that there was a lift going to Ireland,” explained the school teacher, who made the 3,000 km journey with her seven-year-old daughter from war-torn Ukraine to Co Laois.
“I left my parents, relatives, and my husband all back in the Ukraine. They can’t leave their home, but it is not safe to stay in Ukraine so I had to go with my daughter Sasha. I come from the east of Ukraine, and this is part of my country that is being bombed. The war started in my hometown of Kharkov, and it is being bombed every single day since,” she said.
“A lot of people have died already, including kids. We had to stay in a bomb shelter for six days and after that we were lucky to leave. When they started bombing houses, we left the city very early in the morning. We found some safe roads and drove to another part of the country where it was safe and where we heard about the lift to Ireland through the Red Cross.
“My parents worried about taking the lift, but we were assured that we would be safe, and this decision is what saved us.”
Teacher
Iryna, who is currently staying locally with a family outside Abbeyleix, is a fluent English speaker as well as primary school teacher with a master’s degree so the first thing she wants to do is to find a job teaching and accommodation for herself and her daughter.
“I don’t feel comfortable here without a job as I don’t have enough money with me so first I would like to find a job and a place to stay.”
Until then they have found a novel way to fundraise and give back to the Red Cross by selling prints of Sasha’s art. Sasha not only speaks English and plays the piano, but she is also an accomplished artist. Her paintings will go on display for sale at the Dunamaise Arts Centre in Portlaoise from Friday, March 18th with all proceeds going to the Red Cross to support their humanitarian efforts in war torn Ukraine.
“When she was smaller, we noticed her gift for painting,” said Iryna. “She had a private teacher and has done some amazing pictures. This is a way for us to say thanks and to give back to those still in need in Ukraine.”
Since their arrival, the local community has rallied around the mother and daughter. Sasha has been welcomed into Raheen primary school although she misses home.
“Sasha still cries every single day. She is only seven and she cries because her dad is staying in Ukraine. I tried to tell her that we will reunite again in the future, but nobody knows when,” her mother says.
As for Sasha, she says she sees the similarities between her home country and Ireland telling her mother that both countries have “a lot of goodness and kind-hearted people”. Her artwork will be on display until April 1st as part of their fundraising effort for the Red Cross.