Chisinau, Moldova – When Russian bombs rained down upon Mykolaiv at the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, Anastasia’s maternal instinct immediately kicked in; her only concern was protecting her two children.
In the first hours of the attack on her hometown, Anastasia was at home with her daughter, Polina (11), and son, Vladimir (7). Upon hearing the blasts, she began searching for a safe place to shelter with her family, hoping for the nightmare to end quickly.
As days passed, reality began to set in – Anastasia realized the end of the violence was, sadly, nowhere in sight. The shelter, lacking water and electricity, protected her children from the explosions but not from their fears. After spending two weeks in the darkness of the shelter beneath a sky lit by explosions, Polina approached her mother and whispered, “Take me and Vladimir to a safer place.”
The next morning, Anastasia, Polina and Vladimir fled Ukraine to the Republic of Moldova.
Polina (center), Anastasia (right), and Vladimir found a fresh start in Moldova after escaping the bombardment of their hometown, Mykolaiv, Ukraine. Photo: IOM/Olga Derejovschi
In Europe, Moldova has been at the forefront of receiving refugees fleeing Ukraine. Over 1.1 million people have entered Moldova from Ukraine since 24 February 2022, of which around 120,000 are still residing in the country (Source: UNHCR).
Anastasia and her children travelled to Chisinau where a relative who lived in the capital welcomed them with open arms.
“We stayed there for a month. Then I decided to rent an apartment for myself and bring my mother and dog from Ukraine,” Anastasia explains. “A place was offered to us at a very advantageous price after the owner learned about our story. He is a Moldovan man and was very kind to us.”
A month after arriving in Moldova, she found a job as a music teacher in a centre for Ukrainian refugees, drawing on her 30 years of experience as a pianist.
Her work mainly involved helping Ukrainian children in need of mental health support. During the lessons, some of them were aggressive, others hid under the tables or were unable to socialize with the other children.
Navigating the hardships of displacement is a challenge for Ukrainian parents and children alike. The impacts of war on their mental health have been significant – from anxiety to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder – which are further compounded by gaps in access to mental health services for refugees across the region.
One day, a colleague asked Anastasia to use storytelling as a tool to help relieve the burden of their trauma.
“When we started with storytelling, our goal was mainly to speak Ukrainian with the children and tell them about Ukrainian folklore,” she explains. “The impact of storytelling on children went beyond all expectations and I realized that I could do much more.”
“It was an extraordinary experience that gave me so much.”
Children participating in creative activities at Soulmate educational centre in Moldova. Photos: IOM/Olga Derejovschi
Recognizing the power of storytelling and building on her own professional experience with children since she lived in Ukraine, Anastasia decided to open an educational centre in Chisinau called Soulmate.
Finding a suitable place in the city with an affordable rental price proved challenging. She also needed to equip the centre with furniture, decorations and materials for activities.
Despite the difficulties, she managed to open Soulmate. During this period, Anastasia learned of a business grants programme offered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for Ukrainian women entrepreneurs.*
After submitting a proposal to IOM, she was awarded a small grant in May 2024 to support her with the costs of improving and growing her business, recognizing its potential impact for Ukrainian refugees and their host community. This allowed her to expand the activities offered at Soulmate and reach a larger number of children and parents.
“I took the risk, and I made it,” Anastasia proudly says.
Today, Soulmate offers music courses for children, where they learn to play the piano, ukulele and guitar. An English club for Ukrainian teenagers was founded with the assistance of Peace Corps volunteers, and transformative games were created by a Ukrainian psychologist. Anastasia manages the Centre and continues her work with storytelling.
At Soulmate educational centre in Moldova, Ukrainian children are able to express their emotions through creative play while also forming friendships with Moldovan children. Photo: IOM/Riccardo Severi
“I started writing my first fairy tales on Mother's Day. Sometimes, during the lessons, we discuss these fairy tales with colleagues and change the theme based on the children's behaviours and emotions, so that the stories are more suited to their needs.”
Anastasia and her team have already created 20 original stories. As they share them during the lessons, they observe the children’s expressions and reactions to understand how the stories influence their relationships with others.
“Sometimes children don't understand what is good and what is bad, and through these fairy tales they learn to build relationships and respect each other.”
Although the lessons at Soulmate are not in Romanian, Moldovan children have been recently starting to attend them, as parents who speak Ukrainian have volunteered to translate.
“Ukrainian and Moldovan children have similar wishes, that is to socialize, carry out relaxing activities, and receive emotional support. They are very close to each other.”
Anastasia thinks big and makes it happen. For the next few months, the Centre is also organizing a summer camp where children will also be able to write their own creative stories. With a smile, Anastasia adds: “We will print a book with their fairy tales.”
Although life has been far from a fairy tale for Ukrainian refugees in Moldova, their courage, determination and resilience are to be admired.
For Anastasia, her journey to safety proves how a mother’s intuition must always be trusted. Today, she and her children are not only surviving, but thriving, and helping others who have walked the same difficult path.
*Soulmate is one of the 28 small businesses owned by Ukrainian refugees and Moldovans which received an IOM small business grant thanks to the generous financial support of the US Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM), within the “Ukraine Response to support refugees from Ukraine across Europe” project.
For more information on IOM's Ukraine Regional Response: Needs, Intentions, and Border Crossings, click here.
Story by IOM Moldova’s Media and Communications Unit: Riccardo Severi, Ana Gnip, Olga Derejovschi, with edits by Amber Christino.
