OLATHE, Kan. — Nataliya Borth moved to Olathe from Ukraine in 2005. Borth's entire family resides on Ukrainian’s western border.
Last night she said the wait and see turned into fear and fight.
“Today is a dark day for me,” Borth said. “I’ve spent the whole day on the couch crying.”
She explained emotions of denial and despair.
“Ukrainians are very stoic people, we don’t cry much,” she said. “I was surprised I couldn’t stop crying today watching the images fearing and being in a panic.”
“This is my grandma and her great-grandchildren,” Borth said while showing KSHB 41 News pictures of her family.
Borth said her grandmother, who survived World War II, her family and friends woke up to a Russian invasion.
“Could you imagine all of these years, she never dreamed of another war?” she said.
Borth said she was asking her family surreal questions on Thursday.
“Do you have enough cash? Enough food, drinking water? Do you know what to do if there are air raids, do you know where to go?" she said. "I didn’t think I’d utter these questions in 21 century. I felt so helpless, it’s such a burden, you love so much and care and there’s absolutely nothing I could do.”
Borth shared her advice for those in the Kansas City area.
“You can argue, but be good neighbors and don’t hate each other for it,” she said.
