Home is a word that evokes a sense of safety and comfort, but for Ukrainians in B.C. who are witnessing destruction in their homelands, it brings deep pain.
“It's implemented in many different ways through various war crimes through missile strikes, drone strikes,” Marko Zolotrov of Ukraine, who now lives in B.C., told Global News.
Since 2022, more than a million Ukrainians have fled their country and more than 200,000 have settled in B.C., coming to Canada.
However, they are now facing more turmoil as they find that funding is drying up.
“There's a confusion and a fear of what's going to happen to us,” Zolotarov said.
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A federal grant that provides important programs and benefits to refugees will expire on March 31.
That means programs that help Ukrainians learn English or train them for jobs will now be longer.
“They don't have 100s if they're receiving services right now, they're not 1,000s who are receiving services right now,” says Sarvish Rizvi, AMSSA's executive director, Multicultural Societies and Services. But they know they won't be able to do it in just a couple of months.” Agencies of B.C
“Right now there are no good plans in place to offload these services.”
Many Ukrainians still don't have enough points to apply for permanent residency, Zolotrov said.
“I think it's a very important gap,” he said.
Right now, there are more questions than answers about ways to fill this gap.
“So many people currently hiring, so many people currently hiring and the clock is ticking.” Rizvi said.
Ukrainians, watching the heartbreaking destruction of their old home, wonder if they will ever be able to call Canada their new home.
and Copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.