‘I know the country … I can make a difference’
- Olivia Wieseler
- Aug 15, 2022
- 7 min read
Local Ukrainian aiding humanitarian effort after helping family escape war-torn country
On Feb. 24, Alex Tkachenko woke up at 5 a.m. to the sound of explosions. Tkachenko was in his hometown of Kherson, Ukraine, visiting his mother and father-in-law while on a business trip for Scottsbluff’s 21st Century Equipment.
Immediately, Tkachenko drove to the nearest gas station to get gas and figure out what was going on.
“I was in my pajamas, I think. I don’t remember, but I drove to the gas station, and it was packed with people panicking to get gas and leave town as fast as they could to escape,” he said in an interview with Dave December, 21st Century Equipment’s vice president of marketing.
Tkachenko has been an export coordinator for 21st Century Equipment for nearly 11 years. He, his wife Natasha and his daughter immigrated from Ukraine to Scottsbluff in 2011, later becoming U.S. citizens through naturalization in 2017.
“Everyone tries to improve their life. We wanted our daughter to have a happy life, a promising future. This is a big reason we made the decision,” he said. “But also, I met a key leader from Nebraska who gave me hope for potential employment. So, in April 2011, the three of us made the move to Scottsbluff.”
As an export coordinator, Tkachenko works with foreign customers in Europe, doing paperwork, coordinating shipments and meeting customers through business trips and trade shows in Europe. He had left on Feb. 3 for two different trade shows in Kyiv. He also scheduled a few meetings near his hometown of Kherson on Feb 26, which is why he decided to visit his parents-in-law a few days beforehand.
That’s when the invasion began.
“I was taking advantage of a couple of days where I could go visit them, do laundry, get some rest, etc.,” Tkachenko said. “On Feb. 24, I experienced something you don’t face on a regular basis. I woke up to the sound of explosions.”
The explosions were a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While Tkachenko recognized that tensions in Ukraine were high leading up to that date, he said no one thought Russia would actually do it.
“There was strong demand for high-quality equipment,” he said. “Talking to people about the tension with Russia, people expressed their concerns and were on high alert … but nobody was changing their buying desire. Everyone was asking me for equipment, buying what they could, and the shows were very well attended. Nobody thought Russia would invade."
After Tkachenko returned to his parents-in-law from the gas station, he tried to convince them they needed to escape, but they refused.
“I understood. This was their home. They worked all their lives, made payments; they have it paid off, and I’m telling them we need to go, leave and maybe never come back,” he said. “They simply kept asking where they would go. They said they had no relatives or close friends in western Ukraine, and it made more sense to just stay where they were in their home.”
Still, Tkachenko decided to drive around a bit to get a better sense of where the Russians would be coming from and how they might be able to escape if it came to it. While driving, he could see nearby explosions, and oftentimes he had to stop just to make sure it was still safe to drive in the area.
During his second stop, a car with two Ukrainian armed soldiers pulled up behind him. One of them asked Tkachenko if he could hop in the back of Tkachenko’s car, which had tinted windows, in order for him to get closer to the Russian troops so he could get a better look at what they were doing. Tkachenko reluctantly said yes.
“As we turn left on the ramp to go onto the bridge, we see the Russian troops. I know because I see the Russian Kamaz trucks with the ‘Z’ sign with artillery in the back,” he said. “I felt like I was about to start panicking — what to do and where to go. But the guy told me, he was like ‘Don’t panic, they’re not touching civilians.’ … And I just rolled down my windows in the front so they would see me and (see) that it looks like I’m alone in a car.”
After the Ukrainian man got a decent look, Tkachenko made an illegal U-turn — “Who cares that day?” — on the bridge just 30 feet from Russian troops. He took the man to the other side of the gas station for him to report the situation, still only about 100 feet from the Russian soldiers.
“While the guy was reporting the situation, of course, I left the engine running because I knew we may have to get out fast,” Tkachenko said. “Then when he was done, he starts yelling in Ukrainian language to get out of there, and we just took off. I didn’t know that a 1.3-liter sedan car with front wheel drive can drive that fast.”
The next day, Tkachenko saw a video of the aftermath on that bridge, where many Russian troops lay dead and their machinery was destroyed.
“Later, I was able to see the video loaded on YouTube dated Feb. 25, the day after my experience on that same bridge,” he said. “The Russian troops and machinery were destroyed. There was a mass of dead bodies on that bridge.”
After seeing the Russians firsthand that first day, Tkachenko knew it would be too risky for he and his parents-in-law to try to escape. They waited until morning, which wasn’t much easier.
“During the night, we heard fighter jets going over regularly, I think,” he said. “…I was groggy, stressed and fantasizing about how much worse this could all get. My clothes were all on, and I was on high alert. I really just wanted the day to start versus this delay of a night.”
The next morning was quieter, making it more appealing to make a run for the border. Eventually, Tkachenko convinced his parents-in-law to leave, explaining that as the Russians get closer, they’ll demolish cities “without regard to civilian death.”
About three hours into their drive, Russian fighter jets started flying over them, but there were no shootings. They kept driving until 2 a.m. They napped for a few hours in the car and then got back on the road, making it all the way to Kremenets, a city in western Ukraine. That’s when Tkachenko got word that his wife’s sister was still stuck in Kyiv.
“My own parents, whom I was able to communicate with back in the U.S., kept telling me to get out of the country, to think about my family, my wife, my kids. They said, ‘Get out, you have a family. Get out of there,’” he recalled. “I told them I’m not leaving without Natasha’s sister. ‘That’s it; we will not be discussing it anymore.’ So, while Natasha’s parents and I were resting in western Ukraine, we continued to monitor the situation on Natasha’s sister and Kyiv. I was determined to find a way to get her out of there.”
After a few days, his sister-in-law was able to board a train to a town around 40 miles away. She arrived around 4 a.m., outside of curfew hours. After passing through multiple Ukrainian checkpoints and explaining their situation, Tkachenko and his father-in-law waited for her at the train station, where they were searched three different times.
“You just politely get out of the car and explain what you are doing, give them the proper identification, passports, and you just don’t do anything stupid,” he said. “During this, everyone is stressed. This is common stuff and we’re all human. You just want to be sure to be able to explain the actual reason you are at the train station at 4 a.m.”
Finally they picked up his sister-in-law and after resting a few more days, four people loaded up the Toyota SUV with four 10-gallon cans of spare gasoline, three suitcases, some noodles, canned food, drinking water, candles, matches and passports, and then they headed for the Poland/Ukraine border.
They looked for a crossing that had the least number of vehicles and pedestrians, which was at the northwestern border near Belarus. While that seemed like a bad idea, since Russia was attacking via Belarus as well, it turned out to be the best option.
“We crossed the border in five hours,” Tkachenko said. “Crossing into Poland was taking people three or four days of sitting in the car during February, while it’s still bitter cold outside, maybe running out of gas, etc. It was a blessing to cross in five hours.”
They crossed into Poland, which is where his parents- and sister-in-law now reside, while Tkachenko and his wife work to get VISAs for her parents to come to the U.S.
The entire experience has since driven Tkachenko to want to go back and aid the humanitarian effort in his home country. He is currently fundraising to buy a cargo truck or passenger van to help move people and cargo between Poland and Ukraine.
“I feel it’s time I leave my comfort zone and help,” he said. “I was in the lines waiting at the border. Many families split up there. I saw mothers and kids kissing their husbands and fathers saying goodbye, meaning the father had to go back and fight while the family went to Poland. It was heartbreaking to see that occur in front of me over and over. … I’m hoping I can bring some of those wives and kids back to their husbands and fathers to reunite when it is safe to return.”
As a native of Ukraine, it only makes sense to Tkachenko to help the effort.
“There are a lack of drivers and the people with the ability to cross the border and be familiar with the country. I know the country. I speak English, Ukrainian and Russian. I can make a difference right now, and I am going to help.”
To help Tkachenko and the humanitarian effort in Ukraine, visit Tkachenko’s GoFundMe page at www.gofundme.com/f/help-alex-transport-aid-from-poland-to-ukraine.
*This story first appeared in the Star-Herald on Apr. 23, 2022.
Comments