“We are all waiting for a miracle, we don’t lose hope”

Tanya Pinchuk is a journalist, mainly a radio broadcaster. She works with Radio M, one of the Christian radio stations that continued its work in Ukraine in this first year of the war. She is now in Ireland, where she settled in April last year after leaving the country because of the fierce Russian shelling.

Question. How do you feel as you look back on the year that has passed, on a day like today?

Answer. Exactly one year ago, at 3:40am, the war started. I was awake and I heard explosions. I will never forget the noise, I had never heard anything like that before, it was too loud.... I realised that it had started.

A year has passed, and we Ukrainians say that this day lasts for the whole year. This is a sad day, many innocent Ukrainians have died. I lost a friend in Bucha, he was killed by Russian soldiers. But we thank God that we have not been defeated, we have not been broken.

Q. How has your life changed this year?

A. I came to Ireland in April just for temporary protection, it was difficult for me to work in Ukraine, knowing that we were in constant stress and fear. For about two months I was just doing charity work. My work at Radio M stopped. I couldn’t continue with my programme. But in Ireland, my creative brain started working again, and I thought: "Why not create a programme about Ukrainian immigrants? Because many people became homeless, and they are looking for protection. So, from Ireland for our radio, together with a colleague, we made about 30 programmes with migrants. We told the stories of Ukrainian people who have been hosted in different countries.

Q. How are you Ukrainians living in Ireland in this situation?

A. Many Ukrainian immigrants (we are not ‘refugees’ but we were forced to leave the country for some time) started to collect aid for Ukraine. First of all, by spreading the word about what was going on in our country: we spoke at meetings, at peaceful rallies, etc.

These events attracted charitable assistance, fundraising for the army, because soldiers are ordinary, often untrained people. All Ukrainians help each other at home and abroad as much as they can. It is the common misfortune that has united us.

There are more than 50,000 Ukrainian immigrants in Ireland because of the war; mostly, of course, women and children. Many voluntary organisations have been set up, in collaboration with the Irish. Well-known Ukrainian stars, artists, have come to Ireland to thank the Irish people for such tremendous help.

Q. Did you find support from evangelicals in Ireland?

A. It was the first thing I found. Christians are truly brothers and sisters we have in God’s great family all over the world. One Christian woman heard that I was looking for housing, and she had prayed that God would send her a Ukrainian woman. Thanks to our mutual Christian friend, we found each other.

Another Christian friend from Scotland wrote a letter to their affiliated Vineyard Church in Ireland, and they helped me to settle in the country for the first time. I still attend that church, because there are friends and there are also some more Ukrainians.

Q. What are your expectations for the war in the future?

A. We are all waiting for a miracle, we don’t lose hope. I have travelled a lot around the world, even during the war between Russia and Ukraine, and there are many good friends of the Russians who condemn Russian aggression and support Ukraine.

I was in Faro (Portugal), where I found a Slavic church on the Internet and wrote to them to get the address. The pastor met me personally, I was warmly welcomed in the church, it was Ukrainian Christmas time, they were singing Ukrainian Christmas carols, praying for Ukraine. And then I found out that the pastor and his wife were from Russia, and they were against the war. Everything says that the whole world cannot go mad. Soon Babylon will fall, soon Pharaoh will drown in the Red Sea.