Milana’s Story

My name is Milana Lerman, I’m a junior in high school from Kyiv, Ukraine, who now lives in the USA because of the war in my country.

My life in Kyiv was pretty ordinary: I was going to a good school, received good grades, had great friends and a lot of plans for the future. All this had to change on February 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. Luckily enough, since Kyiv is the capital, it was and still is one of the most protected cities which made my situation much better compared to what Ukrainian teenagers from other regions had to go through. However, that doesn’t mean that my journey to the United States was smooth. Many people were trying to escape during the first few weeks which caused massive traffic on the highways. We left the city on the second day, yet weren’t able to make it far enough which caused us to stay in an inn nearby the highway. At the time, Russian troops began to advance rapidly so one day we - my mother, grandmother, my dog and I - had to hide in the field as Russian tanks were progressing towards Kyiv through the highway, the one by the inn. This was and still is one of the scariest moments of my life which definitely left its imprint on me and during the first year in America any loud noise would cause an anxiety attack. However, once I made it here, I managed to establish a new life in a new school, perhaps, even better than the one in Ukraine, with better grades, and new friends. I found great Jewish and Ukrainian communities that helped me to gain a sense of home and made me feel like I belong here as much as I did in Kyiv. I have new goals and aspirations in life, and I’m planning to permanently stay in the U.S. for the education and future career as an attorney.

Without a doubt, my life in Ukraine was great and I miss it, however, my experience with the war helped me to mature, adapt to new life circumstances, and appreciate the country that took me in while still respecting my roots and the culture that raised me for the majority of my life.