I and my wife Olha planned to emigrate for many years, but not very seriously. Every year we tried to win one of the 55,000 spots in the Diversity Visa (DV) lottery in the US. We had dreams about living in California, about mountains, the ocean and a warm climate. Olha and her friend were taking classes to learn English, while I was reading stories about immigration and adaptation.
Everything changed on February 23, 2022. I had a serious talk with Olha about plans for the next period of our life. The next day, the war between Russia and Ukraine started. The first possible country for us to emigrate to was Montenegro. But I understood that it was a small country in Europe with not the best economy before the war and now with lots of people from Ukraine, I needed to find another country.
A few weeks later, Canada announced a new program for Ukrainian citizens with simple entry conditions. At this time, I began to study information about Canada. After learning more and more details about Canada I knew it was a good choice for immigration. Canada has a strong economy, lots of beautiful places, mountains, lots of water (rivers and lakes), one of the best passports, and a high level of university education.
I filled in my visa application on March 17th and on September 15th we started our trip to a new life in a new country. It was a long journey: 13 hours by bus, 3 airplanes and close to 25 hours in the air, and after that we heard for the first time: ”Welcome to Canada!”
Before we came to Canada, I made a few goals for our first year, such as: find a permanent home to live in, buy a car, find a job, get our daughters into school, get them passports, and prepare to get permanent residence.
And now, after one year in Canada, I have some results. First of all, I want to say “Thank you” to all the people I met this year. Because all people in my path here tried to help me and my family. I have never had to ask for help, but here, in Canada, I think people want to help you in any case. In my opinion, Canadians’ desire to help others is something they feel at the genetic level.
PS: We have helped several Ukrainian families get settled. Two families lived in our house until they were able to find their own place. We shared our experiences about banking, building up your credit score, and services here in Vernon.
By Andrii Retunskyi
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