Yuliya LaBrosse, wearing the colors of Ukraine’s flag, displays a sign urging aid for her home country. The Maui News / MELISSA TANJI photos
WAILUKU — Like other Ukrainian transplants on Maui, Dasha Schmidt is not alone in her sleepless nights and constant worry for her family and former country under attack by Russia.
“It’s hard for me to talk. It’s hard for me to sleep. It’s hard for me to eat. It’s hard for me to live right now,” Schmidt said through tears during a ceremony in front of the county building to proclaim Wednesday as “Ukraine Solidarity Day” in Maui County.
Schmidt will send photos and videos of the county event back to her mother, who is sheltering in place in a basement.
“It’s going to give her some hope,” she said.
The Ukrainian national anthem, “Shche ne vmerla Ukraina” (Ukraine has not yet perished), was played as the country’s flag was raised in front of the county building Wednesday morning.
Maui resident Stanislav G. Mokan displays the Ukrainian flag. Mokan moved to the U.S. from Ukraine when he was 11 years old.
Ukrainian Americans sang, some with tears in their eyes.
Originally scheduled to remain up only throughout the day, the flag will stay raised until the conflict ends, Mayor Michael Victorino said during the ceremony.
The county building was also scheduled to be lit in blue and yellow, the colors of the Ukrainian flag, on Wednesday night.
“This community calls from their heart, peace in Ukraine,” Victorino said. “Many of us really feel a true sense of loss because of what we see what war has done and now we see it again.
“War never solves much, but it hurts so many. So we pray in solidarity,” Victorino said.
Maui County’s First Lady Joycelyn Victorino greets Dasha Schmidt, who is formerly of Ukraine and now lives on Maui, along with 2-year-old Kaimana. The Schmidts were wearing vyshyvanka, or a traditional Ukrainian blouse known for its embroidery. Schmidt said her mother is hunkered down in a basement in Ukraine.
Yuliya LaBrosse of Kihei said her 60-year-old father will not leave the country.
“He rather die than see his country destroyed,” she said.
LaBrosse has relatives, friends and classmates all over Ukraine and keeps in touch via the internet, even as coverage may be spotty at times.
On her Facebook account, LaBrosse said the Ukrainian people are asking folks to come out and protest and ask for help to stop Putin.
LaBrosse came to Maui in 2005 and brought her mom over in 2014, when Russia invaded Ukraine and seized Crimea.
LaBrosse is soft-spoken and admitted she is not comfortable being in the spotlight. But she was called up to receive the mayor’s proclamation Wednesday and has spoken to news reporters all in the name of taking action.
“When the war first started, I felt really helpless, I cried for days,” the 38-year-old said. “I wanted to do something.”
Asked if her family and friends will leave Ukraine, LaBrosse said it’s not that easy, as those waiting to get through Poland’s border face a line miles long and that it may not be safe to try to escape.
Dmytro Khilko, of Haiku, who came to New York in 1997 and then to Maui in 2010, said that for now, his hometown of Lviv in western Ukraine has not been bombed yet.
“I hope the Russian military will never reach there, but you never know. None of us expected what was going to happen in the first place,” the 46-year-old said after the county’s ceremony.
“I think the world, including Ukraine, underestimated Putin. I think we all underestimated Putin at that time,” he added.
“But I also think Putin underestimated Ukraine and underestimated the world. The response from the rest of the world to the crisis on every level from individuals all the way to politicians, to presidents has been incredible. The unity has been incredible.”
Stanislav G. Mokan of Kihei came to the ceremony carrying the Ukrainian flag, which was made for him by a friend’s wife.
“It’s very sad what’s going on over there. My dad still has a lot of family over there,” said Mokan, who came to the U.S. and settled in Oregon with his family when he was 11 years old.
“The past week has been very stressful, cannot sleep. I try to put myself in those people’s shoes — they cannot sleep normal, waking up to the sounds of bomb and sirens, whatnot.”
The 35-year-old said he is thankful that his family moved to the U.S. with their 10 children. His parents are still in Oregon, and he communicates with his cousins back in Ukraine. His family is near the Romanian border.
Mokan described the situation as “horrible.”
“I cannot imagine having kids and going through that,” said Mokan, who is the father of two boys.
His wife is also from Ukraine, but her family is also mainly in the U.S.
According to a county news release, Maui County residents seeking to help the Ukrainian war refuges may donate to the Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund at www.globalgiving.org/projects/ukraine-crisis-relief-fund/.
* Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji@mauinews.com.
Maui County’s First Lady Joycelyn Victorino greets Dasha Schmidt, who is formerly of Ukraine and now lives on Maui, along with 2-year-old Kaimana. The Schmidts were wearing vyshyvanka, or a traditional Ukrainian blouse known for its embroidery. Schmidt said her mother is hunkered down in a basement in Ukraine. 
Maui resident Stanislav G. Mokan displays the Ukrainian flag. Mokan moved to the U.S. from Ukraine when he was 11 years old. 
Yuliya LaBrosse, wearing the colors of Ukraine’s flag, displays a sign urging aid for her home country. The Maui News / MELISSA TANJI photos
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