A Ukrainian dance instructor, now working in Durham, left Ukraine just a day or so before Russia launched its military strikes — but he left his family behind.
His new community has since shown its support while he stays in Durham longer than he had originally planned.
Ruslan Golovashchenko left Ukraine to teach dance classes at the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Durham. Not long after he arrived in town, he got word about the attack.
“My wife called and said ‘Ruslan, the war started and Russia is starting to bomb,” he told ABC 11 News. “Now, I think every day is worse and worse.”
His wife and two young daughters — one of whom has special needs — live in Kyiv and are not currently able to evacuate.
Many of those associated with the studio have ties to Ukraine. With news footage showing the destruction, the studio’s owners and other instructors held a one-day benefit to raise money to help the Golovashchenko family leave Ukraine as quickly as possible. People paid $50 each for a lesson, with proceeds going to this urgent cause.
“We hardly sleep. We check in with our parents every hour. Every day, just asking God to save them. When they answer the phone, it’s a good thing and you’re happy they’re alive,” dance studio owner Yuiry Simakov told ABC 11 News.
