Ukrainian exchange student shares experiences with Stevens Point council

STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAW) - Imagine being an exchange student in a foreign country while your home country is being invaded. That’s exactly what’s happening to a Ukrainian student attending Stevens Point Senior High. She spoke to the Stevens Point city council Monday night.

Junior Mariya Koval is scared and concerned about what’s going on in Ukraine. She said it’s hard watching her family and friends suffer.

She talked about how people in central Wisconsin can help those struggling. Koval believes it’s important for people to share on social media accurate information and news of the war to bring awareness and support. She said there are thousands of people in need of food, water, and medical attention.

“It is my duty and the smallest thing that I can do to make people aware of this situation and provide information on how they can be involved and how they can help,” SPASH Ukrainian Exchange student Mariya Koval said.

Children are also in desperate need right now, for many of them, their schools are in disrepair. In her speech Monday night, Koval said your help won’t go unnoticed.

“I know that a lot of people in Ukraine see this and they really appreciate that they’re not alone and there are people all around the world who can help and who want to help and support no matter what is going on,” she said.

Koval said her mother has fled Ukraine and is now in Portugal, but her father is still in Ukraine and hasn’t been able to contact him in over three weeks. This is because of the lack of cell phone signal and internet right now in Ukraine. Koval plans to stay in Wisconsin until at least June and she hopes to eventually reunite with her family.

If you would like to help donate and help those struggling in Ukraine, below are some links:

· Donate to Humanitarian Assistance - National Bank: (https://bank.gov.ua/en/news/all/natsionalniy-bank-vidkriv-rahunok-dlya-gumanitarnoyi-dopomogi-ukrayintsyam-postrajdalim-vid-rosiyskoyi-agresiyi)

· Donate to UA Army - National Bank: (https://bank.gov.ua/en/news/all/natsionalniy-bank-vidkriv-spetsrahunok-dlya-zboru-koshtiv-na-potrebi-armiyi)

· Donate to UA Army - Come Back Alive Charity: (https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate/)

· Donate to Children of Ukraine – UNICEF: https://www.unicefusa.org/stories/children-ukraine-fear-future/39547

· Post information about charity organizations mentioned above

· Share this page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://helpukrainewin.org/

· Share this page on Twitter: https://tinyurl.com/4yrwf462

· Share this page on Linkedln: https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https://helpukrainewin.org/

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