A childhood curiosity inspires lifesaving sponsorship

An extended family from Ukraine finds safety in Minnesota

“I always asked myself if I would have the courage to do something like this.”

Mark Norlander has reflected on that question since he read the book “The Hiding Place” as a child. In the book, a family hides refugees fleeing from the Nazis. In real life, Mark and his wife Sharon sponsored an extended family of Ukrainian newcomers fleeing the February 2022 Russian invasion of their country.

“Obviously [sponsoring Ukrainians] doesn't have the danger of hiding from Nazis or anything like that,” he said. “But it's still the idea of welcoming a stranger into your home. We have to get them to safety.”

Mark and Sharon have spent years building bridges across cultures—working as French teachers at a local school and serving as directors of an American-Japanese cultural exchange program. When the cultural exchange program ended as a result of COVID, they yearned for another way to stay engaged.

While volunteering with Alight, a global refugee support organization based in Minneapolis, Mark and Sharon learned about sponsorship through Welcome Connect. Sponsorship enabled Mark to address his childhood question and offered the couple a new way to bridge cultures.

Mark signed up on the Welcome Connect platform and soon met Vadim Holiuk, a father of three girls whose family was from Dobropillya, a little region in the Donetsk area.

“We decided to leave because from the first days of the war, it was not a very safe area,” Vadim said. “The front line was really close to that region.”

Fleeing the dangers of war, they left their jobs, home, and family behind and first went to Poland. There, they stayed in an overcrowded school that was being used as a refugee camp for hundreds of Ukrainians searching for safety. Vadim knew they needed another option.

By pure accident, the family discovered Welcome Connect and joined the platform. Although a limited number of Americans on the platform were willing to sponsor a larger family, they soon connected with Mark and Sharon who agreed to sponsor them in a matter of weeks.

“We hear awful stories in the news about the war, and we can do something concrete and at the same time celebrate our own culture and use our skills in a meaningful way in retirement,” Sharon said.

Vadim, his wife Lyubov, and their daughters received travel authorization within 24 hours of applying, and three days later, they were bound for Brooklyn Park, Minn. They arrived safely in the U.S. in the fall of 2022.

When they lived in Ukraine, Vadim and Lyubov had a comfortable life—both were engineers working for a major railroad company. In the U.S., Vadim found employment challenging because he was still learning English. After submitting many applications, he finally found a job with a local company. They were soon ready to move into a nearby duplex, and the congregation at the Norlanders’ church volunteered to furnish their new home.

The family has adjusted to and thrived in their new community over the past year. Vadim has found work in his field as an engineer in a position that enables him to spend more time with his family. Their 11-year-old twin daughters, Alisa and Anastasia, adore their middle school.

“Our kids absolutely love America," Vadim said. "They love the school system here. It's completely different from how the schools are in Ukraine."

So one year after sponsoring Vadim, Lyubov, and their girls, the Norlanders extended their generosity to welcome Vadim’s relatives. In October 2023, Mark and Sharon sponsored his parents, sister, and niece.

Just as they had done for Vadim and his family, the Norlanders offered support and care to the newest arrivals. Vadim’s parents, sister, and niece now live on a neighboring street, just a 10-minute walk from Vadim’s home.

As his family now settles in the U.S., Vadim shared that they are grateful for the support they received from the Norlanders and are eager to create a new life in the United States.

“Ukrainians are very independent, they’re work-oriented. They want to live comfortably and take care of themselves and build their own lives,” Vadim said. “I'm assuming a lot of sponsors are afraid that maybe some refugees will be a burden to them in a way. I want to show that Ukrainians are very kind. They never take anything for granted.”

And, he added, sponsorship is a “huge, life changing possibility for Ukrainians” still searching for safety and support.