B次元官网网址淚t gets harder and harder to say goodbye each time,B次元官网网址� says a tearful Vitaliia Atamaniuk in her Victoria home, contemplating her husband OlegB次元官网网址檚 imminent return to war-torn Ukraine.

An all too familiar feeling for the couple, who have had to adjust to life living in countries thousands of kilometres apart, after the war in Ukraine began on Feb. 24 2022.

B次元官网网址淚t feels hard, but B次元官网网址� I feel better when I know my family [can] stay alive in a safe place, itB次元官网网址檚 really important,B次元官网网址� says Oleg, who has been able to visit his family in Canada only a handful of times in the past 29 months.

Fleeing the war with her mother and two young children Olusia and Markiian B次元官网网址� who were five years old and three months old at the time B次元官网网址� Vitaliia arrived in Greater Victoria in September 2022.

B次元官网网址淚t was a so scary time,B次元官网网址� said Vitaliia. B次元官网网址淚nitially it was extremely hard because it's so far from home, more than 10,000 kilometres. We didn't know what to expect.B次元官网网址�

Oleg stayed behind to continue working as a surgeon and teaching at the national medical university in the family's hometown B次元官网网址� the western Ukraine city of Ivano-Frankivsk.

B次元官网网址淚 must stay because we have a lot of different patients and half of my hospital is civilian and other half military B次元官网网址� I work in both parts,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淗e's so patriotic,B次元官网网址� says Vitaliia. B次元官网网址淚f we didnB次元官网网址檛 have kids I would stay in Ukraine too. I'm not thinking about my life, I'm just thinking about our kids' lives.B次元官网网址�

Afraid for her husband left behind, Vitaliia says Oleg was equally concerned for her and their children when they arrived in Greater Victoria. B次元官网网址淗e was afraid about us because I have two small kids and it was [an] unfamiliar country for us, new culture, new people.B次元官网网址�

But with the safety of her children her top priority, Vitaliia focused on helping them settle into their temporary home at the B次元官网网址楿krainian Safe HavenB次元官网网址� in East Sooke, a former 82-acre resort property, offering accommodation to dozens of families.

The family lived there for more than a year, grateful for the hospitality of the owners Brian and Sharon Holowaychuk, who Vitaliia describes as part of her B次元官网网址淐anadian family.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淚t's a beautiful place, so I feel that I'm in a safe place and there were a lot of Ukrainian families there,B次元官网网址� she says.

Fast-forward to 2025 and Vitaliia lives in Victoria, working in an administrative role for Island Health at the Royal Jubilee Hospital. A far cry from her career as a general surgeon at the Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, but Vitaliia is grateful to be working in a medicine-related field.

Now eight and three years old, the Atamaniuk children have settled into life in Canada. Youngest child Markiian, can speak both English and Ukranian B次元官网网址� with a Canadian accent. Their daughter Olusia is now in Grade 2 at school and can speak English fluently.

When asked how it feels to watch his children grow up from a distance, Oleg cannot put his feelings into words, only able to reiterate again the importance that his family are safe from the war.

Daily video calls have helped Oleg stay connected to his family in Victoria, but with a 10-hour time difference, Vitaliia says he has missed key moments in their lives, such as MarkiianB次元官网网址檚 first steps and his first tooth.

B次元官网网址淭he first everything,B次元官网网址� she says.

For the children it has been difficult being apart from their father, especially Olusia, who Vitaliia says is a B次元官网网址榙addyB次元官网网址檚 girlB次元官网网址�.

B次元官网网址淚nitially it was so hard because they have such a strong bond and connection,B次元官网网址� she says. "But we tried to care of her B次元官网网址� because she's so sensitive.B次元官网网址�

But the family are grateful for what they have. Their home in Ivano-Frankivsk is still standing, for other Ukrainians staying in Greater Victoria, the story is different.

B次元官网网址淭hey have lost everything,B次元官网网址� says Vitaliia about the Ukrainians she has befriended in Canada.

B次元官网网址淵ou work all your life B次元官网网址� for home, a car B次元官网网址� one day you lose everything,B次元官网网址� adds Oleg. B次元官网网址淏ut it's better than you lose life or health.B次元官网网址�

While Ivano-Frankivsk is more than 1,000 kilometres from the front line of the war in the east of the country, the city is not immune from Russian rocket attacks.

B次元官网网址淥ne day there was a rocket attack when I called him B次元官网网址� it was loud explosion,B次元官网网址� Vitaliia recalls. The target was an electrical substation, says Oleg, 30 kilometres from their house.

The support of her parents B次元官网网址� her father recently arrived from Ukraine B次元官网网址� her children and the Greater Victoria community brings Vitaliia some comfort.

B次元官网网址淰ancouver Island people give us the feeling that we are not guests, we are like Canadian people, so we feel that we are at home,B次元官网网址� she says.

The couple have also formed close bonds with the Langford humanitarian group, , who will make their fourth trip to the battle-scarred country in March to deliver much-needed aid.

As a trustee of the childrenB次元官网网址檚 hospital in Ivano-Frankivsk, Oleg has collaborated with the group to help establish a breast milk bank for premature babies.

Oleg describes their support as invaluable and B次元官网网址渁mazing.B次元官网网址� 

B次元官网网址淲ithout support from different people, from different countries, we lose our country,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淲e must work every day to save it.B次元官网网址�

As the Atamaniuk family reflect on the third anniversary of the day Russia invaded Ukraine, their thoughts go to the thousands of lives lost during the war.

B次元官网网址淚t's really hard B次元官网网址� we lose the best Ukrainian people,B次元官网网址� says Oleg. B次元官网网址淥ur colleagues, surgeons B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 really good people.

B次元官网网址淚n the next weeks, next month, next day, we don't know what will be happening,B次元官网网址� he adds.

But while the war continues, Vitaliia is hopeful for its end, and the day she and the children can return home. Something she often yearns for.

"But then I remind myself why I am here," she says. "The main reason I'm here is the kids' safety. This sacrifice is for them."