By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
Union City, Tenn.–In the wake of their county’s war with Russia, the Kostanian family fled Ukraine for the safety of the United States of America.
Union City Schools welcomed them with open arms.
During the recently-completed school year, Sara Brown’s kindergarten class rolled out the red carpet for the youngest of three Kostanian children, Oleksii.
As a welcoming gesture after she was informed Oleksii would be part of her class family, Brown displayed pictures, maps, and information on Ukraine – even before he arrived on the first day of school. She also set up an area in her classroom as a place of reference and often steered students to that area when learning about Oleksii and his homeland throughout the school year.
“I’ll never forget the look on his family members’ faces when they saw this hanging in my classroom,” Brown said of the display. They were brought to tears, but all I could imagine was the difficulties they’d faced on their journey – leaving their home and businesses and immersing themselves in a world that was new and unknown to them.
“It was such a small thing I did in comparison to what they’ve endured.”
The other two Kostanian children (Timofii, 2nd grade) and Matvii (6th grade) were also embraced by their UC Schools classmates and enjoyed successful years.
Brown asked the children to write about their experience of coming to America, and they submitted the following:
On February 24, 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine. At that moment, we were in the city of Kharkiv in our house and woke up at exactly 4:00 a.m. from loud explosions. It was very scary. I kept dreaming about explosions and war for a long time.
It later turned out that these were attacks on military bases and all the power structures in the city of Kharkiv. The explosions were also heard near our house. We spent more than 10 days in the basement of our house, only coming out to get groceries. We didn’t understand if it was safe to go outside and what to do.
After some time, we decided to leave the city for the safety of the children. Dad drove us to western Ukraine for two days, and there were terrible traffic jams on the roads. People were fleeing the war in large columns. All families were taking their children and women to a safe place.
In March, Dad took us to the territory of Moldova, and he himself returned to Ukraine to resolve his issues. Meanwhile, we went to Latvia to stay with our grandmother. We waited for Dad for over a month, and when he arrived safe and unharmed, we were happy. During this time, we attended a Latvian school.
Afterward, we moved to Italy, then to France, where we also enrolled in a French school. It was very interesting. After spending two wonderful months in France, our relatives offered us to move to the United States as refugees. We chose Union City in the state of Tennessee because our mom’s sister lived in this city.
Her husband, William Doupis, is a professional military officer. Their relatives, Ross and Kathy Clark, offered to be our sponsors for the move to the United States. In July 2022, we bought tickets and moved to the USA. Initially, we flew to New York, where Mom and Dad bought us different delicious desserts and ice cream. We were met in Nashville and taken to a house that they had rented for us in advance.
The city (Union City) turned out to be very cozy and small. Our parents took us to school. The school was very beautiful, and we liked the teachers and children very much because they welcomed us with joy and kindness. At first, we didn’t understand everything because it took time to learn the new language. But soon, we learned to understand and speak English, and we made friends.
During this time, we played soccer, basketball, and baseball. We really enjoy living in this city; it is very cozy and friendly. We love it when Dad takes us to Sonic, McDonald’s, and the pizzeria.
In Union City Schools, there are the kindest teachers and children. We have grown to love some teachers, and we really love their subjects. Nobody bullies us, and we really enjoy studying here. We try our best so that our parents are not ashamed of us. Studying in Union City Schools is a pleasure! Thank you, guys, for accepting us, helping us, and continuing to help us learn the new language and culture.
At the conclusion of the school year, Brown invited the Kostanian family to visit her class. The group looked at pictures of the varying landscapes and traditions of Ukraine and learned about many important historical events in the country.
They also enjoyed chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache and cream cheese icing made by Oleksii’s mother, Olena. The cupcakes were decorated with blue and yellow icing to match the colors of the Ukraine flag.
Olena operates Bizinka Bakery out of her home here in UC, where she makes delicious breads, cakes, and various other unique pastries.
Brown reflected fondly on her year with Oleksii and the progress he made just prior to classes being dismissed for the summer.
“Oleksii came to me on that first day of school, unable to speak any English,” she recalled. “He quickly adapted to his new life and fit right in immediately. He ended up as one of my top readers, and he understands and speaks English very well. He is an incredibly hard worker, which speaks to the character of his family.
“I feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to teach him and to teach my students about different cultures. Diversity is always embraced, and I can’t wait to see how this young boy grows up in our school system and the amazing things he will do one day!”