Documentary follows journey of Ukrainian family forced to flee, Wisconsin couple who offer to be their sponsors
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The documentary “One Good Reason” will be available to all audiences on World Refugee Day, June 20, 2023, after debuting June 7 on opening night of the Tribeca Film Festival. This powerful and inspiring film from Emmy Award-winning directors Perri Peltz and Matthew O’Neill follows the journey of a Ukrainian family as they flee the war in their home country, and the generosity of an American couple in rural Wisconsin who become their bridge to safety by offering to serve as their sponsors.
“One Good Reason” was produced by Tribeca Studios in partnership with ServiceNow, the leading digital workflow company making the world work better for everyone. The documentary shines a spotlight on the first-of-its-kind online platform called Welcome Connect, created by Welcome.US and built on the Now Platform, where displaced people seeking refuge in the United States can safely and easily find and connect with potential sponsors in their native language.
The 25-minute film chronicles the raw and vulnerable moments as Olesia and Mykola Hnatiuk and their two young sons make the difficult decision to leave Lviv, Ukraine and begin a new life in Unity, Wisconsin, a small town of 384 people. As the Hnatiuk family meet their sponsors Bryce and Maxine Luchterhand, and worry about the fate of their relatives who remain in Ukraine, they also find connection and community—from learning English at the local library, making borscht the Wisconsin way (with cheese!), to tapping maple trees for syrup.
Nearly two million Americans from every corner of the country have raised their hands to welcome and support individuals and families in need of safety through the U.S. government’s humanitarian programs, which require the support of a sponsor. Yet today, there are still over 16,000 displaced persons registered on the Welcome Connect platform that are waiting to connect with an American sponsor. This story is a moving example of how everyday private citizens are helping grow the capacity of the traditional refugee resettlement infrastructure by serving as sponsors for people in urgent need.
A trailer for “One Good Reason” is available at ServiceNow.com/OneGoodReason. Watch “One Good Reason” at the same link starting at noon PST on World Refugee Day, June 20.
To learn more about how you can provide a lifeline for people forced to flee their homes, please visit Welcome.US.
About Welcome.US
At Welcome.US, our mission is to unleash the desire and capacity of Americans to welcome newcomers and help them thrive. We operate on the evidence that direct participation with newcomers transforms both the welcomer and those being welcomed. By making it easier for Americans from all walks of life to participate in the work of welcoming—and telling their stories—we are building a movement that celebrates America’s welcoming spirit by providing an opportunity to serve for all who seek to welcome. Our diverse community of Welcomers reaches across real and perceived divides to meet the needs of newcomers more effectively. In partnership with local and national resettlement agencies, diaspora organizations and leaders, refugees, community sponsorship groups, nonprofits, businesses, faith-based institutions, veterans, universities, four former Presidents and four former First Ladies, Welcome.US is a single point of entry for Americans who want to get involved and support those who are starting new lives in the United States.
To learn more about Welcome.US, please visit Welcome.US.
