California National Guard’s relationship with Ukraine spans decades, now shifting to remote aid

Sacramento, CA – The California Nationwide Guard has labored with the Ukrainian navy since 1993. Now, almost three a long time later, a name heart has been devoted contained in the California Nationwide Guard headquarters in Sacramento, to assist streamline help and reduction to the Ukrainian navy.  

California’s Nationwide Guard helped prepare the Ukrainian navy after 2014 and has labored with them on different coaching efforts because the Soviet Union dissolved. 

“We targeted nearly solely on serving to to reform their navy and serving to to coach their troops for fight,” California Nationwide Guard Maj. Gen. David S. Baldwin stated. The decision heart, he stated, is one thing the guard has by no means performed earlier than. 

RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE: LIVE UPDATES

Over time, members of the Guard have been deployed to Ukraine to coach in fight conditions. Anastasia Maynich, a California Nationwide Guard member and a Ukrainian-American, has had first-hand experiences with field-training. Maynich was additionally deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, and joined the USA Military after 2001, following in her grandfather’s footsteps who was a World Struggle II veteran.

“It was one thing that I cherished to do as a result of I wasn’t there for simply myself. I used to be there to assist the folks and for the folks,” Maynich stated. She stated she’s no stranger to leaping into motion. It is what she determined to do when she realized her cousin, Tetiana, and her cousin’s 11-year-old daughter, Sophia, have been nearly killed in Ukraine. 

ZELENSKYY SETS GROUND RULES FOR PEACE AGREEMENT, RUSSIA CENSORS HIM

“They’re my household, and also you’ll do something for the folks that you just love,” Maynich stated. She started the virtually 5 thousand-mile journey to the Romanian and Ukraine border to choose them up and produce them to security. Tetiana and Sofiia packed what they may earlier than leaving Odessa. On the way in which, they stated their automobile was struck by gunfire. 

Tetiana and 11-year-old Sofiia are pictured above after crossing into Bucharest. (Anastasia Maynich)

After staying a couple of week in Bucharest, Maynich, Tetiana and Sophia went on a four-day journey to Germany, the place they stayed with an in depth buddy, till they heard from U.S. immigration officers.

However this was solely the primary a part of the journey for the household. As a result of a visa is required to reach in the USA by aircraft, Tatiana and Sophia then flew to Mexico, and crossed into the U.S. by way of Tijuana. 

UKRAINIAN REFUGEE IN US: ‘I DON’T BELIEVE THAT WE’RE HERE’ AFTER CROSSING THE SOUTHER BORDER

“If I can save not less than two lives throughout this disaster, I’m extraordinarily grateful for with the ability to do this,” Maynich stated. 

The household is now quickly staying with Maynich in her Bay Space house in California. 

“Human beings have to assist one another, and so they [Ukrainian’s] actually simply have to remain sturdy,” Tatiana stated after arriving into the USA.