'Desperate' Ukrainians seek Canadian host families
Last summer, Troy and Angela McLaughlin were watching the news about the war in Ukraine, feeling hopeless. But, they decided that day to step up and host a Ukrainian family fleeing their war torn homeland, and they’re so happy that they did.
“It’s been fantastic. It’s been really good for the heart. We get a lot from them, and I’m sure they get something from us,” said Troy.
For Irina Panova, her son Artur and mother Luda — who have staying with the McLaughlin family since August — it is something that represents safety, security and a fresh start.
“Without them, we would not have coped. We have become very close with them. They’ve become our second family. We are very much theirs,” said Irina, using Google Translate.
But a year into the conflict, and with no end in sight, Ukrainian refugees aren’t finding Canada as inviting as before.
“There’s a huge demand right now, of desperate people looking for housing and there are very few hosts. At the beginning of this, there were more hosts than Ukrainians coming, now it’s the other way around. We need more hosts desperately,” said McLaughlin.
Angela McLaughlin used Google Translate to communicate with Irina Panova and her son, Artur, the Ukrainian family she is hosting in Exeter, Ont., on March 26, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)Bonnie and Charles Forron are hosting their second Ukrainian family since last March. Their first family just found an affordable apartment in London, Ont. after nearly a year of searching.
“There is a great need, especially now that hosts are becoming tired, or having to keep their families longer periods of time, so there is a great need for more hosts. Unfortunately, as time moves on in Ukraine, the situation is not improving, so more people are looking to come,” said Bonnie.
The McLaughlin and Forron families would help more Ukrainians if they could, but there are simply very few places for the new to Canada families to move on to, in order to open up spots for the rush of Ukrainians looking for refuge.
“We understand perfectly well that we have to live for today. We need to develop, earn money, [and] move. That’s how I understand it, in order to live normally, and have a normal life,” said Iryna Kurbtova, who is staying with the Forron family with her son Maxim, and mother Liudmyla.
“We hope we will succeed, because we have nowhere to return to. It is simply impossible now. I need to take care of my mother, because she is a non-working person, so the main problem right now is housing, and the second is learning the English language, eh,” said Irina, who recently landed her first job in Canada, in Exeter, Ont.
The McLaughlin and Forron families said they couldn’t have become host families without the support of local service clubs and churches who have offered both financial and volunteer help since last March.
Over 150,000 Ukrainians have reportedly fled to Canada since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.