CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As the fighting continues in Ukraine, many are fleeing to neighboring European countries. Still, many Ukrainians are choosing to stay in the place they call home. Some of them have loved ones in the Carolinas.
It’s been more than two years since Daniel Gispert and his fiancée Tanya spent a carefree afternoon at Freedom Park in Charlotte.
“We spent about eight months together every day, I would drive her to work at 5 a.m. in the morning, go back to sleep," Gispert said.
It wasn’t long before Gispert proposed.
"Like it was really early on in the relationship and it was mega cringe but that was the day that I told her I loved her because I just knew it right then and there," Gispert said.
There was just one problem: Tanya was only in the United States on a student visa.
She returned to her home country of eastern Ukraine.
"We had a chance to get her to the United States," he said. "We came to an understanding with each other, but it was too late because COVID came through. And at that point, travel was restricted. And there was no way for me to get her back to me."
The possibility of getting Tanya to the United States now seems impossible with the conflict raging in Ukraine.
"She's volunteering and providing rations and first aid to non-military soldiers that are protecting Ukraine," he said.
Gispert's been communicating with his fiancée through apps, but sometimes he can’t reach her.
"Initially, I was trying to convince her to leave, but she had moved to be with their parents when the war started," he said.
Sometimes, when his fears run wild, he thinks back to the days when things weren’t so complicated.
"It's terrifying," Gispert said. "It's disheartening. It's nothing I would wish on anybody. Absolutely, absolutely. I fear for everyone in Ukraine's safety."
He fears for his fiancée the most.
Contact Shamarria Morrison at smorrison@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.