Two Ukrainian refugees were sleeping at a McDonald’s in Poland. They arrived in Philly Tuesday night.
The two women — a theology teacher and a choir director — among the first to reach the metro area, ahead of an expected tide of arrivals over the next year
Two Ukrainian women who had been sleeping at a McDonald’s in Warsaw after escaping the Russian invasion are expected to arrive in Philadelphia late Tuesday night, according to local church officials.
They’re among the first war refugees to reach the metro area, ahead of what’s expected to be a tide of arrivals over the next year.
The women, Alla Pukhteska, a theology teacher, and Veronika Matviienko, a choir director, fled their homes in Kyiv as Russia began its bombardment of the capital. They found their way out of the country and into Poland, where one managed to phone a contact, Bishop of Philadelphia Luke Zhoba, at St. Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral in the Northern Liberties neighborhood, officials there said.
The bishop turned to a staff member: “Veronika is in a McDonald’s.”
“They said, ‘Help! Help us!’” said Susan Guz, who is vice president of the governing church council, the choir director, and church secretary. “We sprang into action.”
The bishop is driving to New York City on Tuesday night to meet the women at John F. Kennedy International Airport and bring them to Philadelphia. They’re due to arrive at the airport on a LOT Polish Airlines flight.
Both are coming with the clothes on their backs, nothing more, Guz said.
Their pending arrival was first reported by Fox 29 Philadelphia.
The women will stay at the rectory of the church, which has been outfitted with bedding and supplies. The church expects to soon receive more refugees, a family of six — a priest, his wife, and their four young sons, Guz said.
The two women had a connection to the local bishop through a governing church in Kyiv. Church officials here wrote a letter of invitation, directed the women to the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, and alerted Polish clergy to try to assist.
The two women were provided expedited visas to enter the United States through the embassy in Poland, church officials said.
Though the two are refugees by U.N. definition — someone who has fled their homeland because of persecution — in the eyes of federal immigration authorities they are visa-holders.
The process through which people fleeing conflict enter the United States is important, because it directly impacts the level of government support they can receive and their ability to stay in the country permanently.
Visas expire. People who are admitted to the U.S. as legal refugees must become permanent residents and can apply for citizenship.
Last week the Biden administration announced plans to accept up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees into the United States, concentrating on admitting those who have family ties here.
Ukrainians are expected to come through multiple legal immigration routes, including the formal U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. That expected surge into the United States has not begun, but some people have been making their way here through other means.
Some Ukrainians fleeing the war have appeared at the southern border, seeking asylum in the United States. They apparently flew from Ukraine to Mexico City, then traveled north.
U.S. officials recently reiterated that Ukrainians and others seeking asylum at the border should not automatically be barred from entering under the Title 42 health law. That followed news reports of refusals based on Title 42, a World War II-era law that’s been used to deny entry to people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
An estimated 3.9 million people have fled Ukraine since the war erupted. About 2.3 million of those are in Poland.