News of de-occupation of Kherson hits close to home for some Waterloo residents

A couple of Waterloo residents, who grew up near the city of Kherson, are hopeful their hometown will be among the next to see the withdrawal of Russian troops.

Residents who are from the Kherson region came together to celebrate with watermelon- the food for which the Kherson region is famous.

Myroslava Makarenko and Sergii Tokayuk are happy to hear that Russian troops have departed the city of Kherson.

“I was crying happy tears because it is quite unbelievable,” said Makarenko.

“It’s a major step in de-occupying the Kherson region, which included my hometown as well, so I’m very happy to hear that news,” added Tokayuk.

It is also bittersweet for the couple as their hometown Hola Prystan remains occupied.

“My apartment where I lived almost all my life, now Russian soldiers live there,” said Myroslava.

Tokayuk came to Canada in 2019, and says it was tough to watch what was happening back home.

“It was very difficult, especially considering that everything in Kherson started very quickly and went very quickly,” said Tokayuk.

Myroslava, who was a pharmacist in her hometown, left in April.

“On the first day of war, I walked in my pharmacy, and we had a crowd of people because people were in a panic,” said Myroslava.

Some of their loved ones have left the Kherson region while others remain. Tokayuk’s relatives, even those in occupied areas, are looking forward to brighter days.

“Basically, whoever is left there, they’re taking care of each other because there’s almost nothing left there – like the market, our market where we mostly take our food from is closed,” he said. “They say they are waiting for all of us to assemble all together once again.

Myroslava baked Vertuta, buns made with pumpkins and apples – a traditional southern Ukrainian treat to share a time of renewed optimism.

“I hope that in the near future, we can see Ukrainians free of Russian soldiers,” said Myroslava.