by Sharon Aaseng Ukraine has played a major role in the lives of a Hastings couple for the past 10 years. Curt and Sharon Aaseng hosted a Ukrainian named Roman Polishchuk, who quickly became as close …
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by Sharon Aaseng
Ukraine has played a major role in the lives of a Hastings couple for the past 10 years. Curt and Sharon Aaseng hosted a Ukrainian named Roman Polishchuk, who quickly became as close as a son to them. They were connected by the AFS student exchange program in 2012, with the Aasengs being the host family for Roman for the school year 2012-2013. Roman attended HHS, played on the HHS soccer team, and throughout his time in Hastings gave presentations on Ukraine at various organizations in the area. From the day that Roman came to Hastings, he was focused on educating Americans as much as possible about his beloved homeland.
While living here, Roman met a Norwegian-American businessman attending the same church as the Aasengs. Mindekirken (The Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church) is located in Minneapolis. Orlyn became Roman’s mentor and provided him with opportunities to speak on behalf of Ukraine. These included representing his country at an international event in Oslo, Norway in 2014 and The Nobel Peace Prize Forum in Minneapolis in 2015. Orlyn and Roman have maintained their mentor-protegé relationship to this day.
Roman returned to Ukraine after his year in Hastings to attend Ivan Franko University in Lviv, graduating with a degree in International Relations. Since then, he has gone on to travel the world as a business associate and as an advocate for Ukraine.
After the invasion of his country last week, Roman and his fiancée Yuliana have been involved in volunteering their time helping the refugees pouring into their city. On March 2, he and Yuliana participated in a panel discussion now on YouTube about how to help fellow citizens deal with the current crisis. It is found at Youth4Peace in Ukraine:Webinar on March 2, 2022. #Youth4Peace #allforukraine #PATRIR
The war in Ukraine has affected Curt and Sharon as any parent would react if their child’s life were threatened. Roman and Yuliana have taken shelter a number of times as a result of hearing the air-raid sirens. taking cover in the cold, unfinished basement of their rented place which is partially open to the outside, a small space heater being their only source of warmth besides their jackets.
Their current project involves countering all the lies and propaganda with facts, as the war on their country continues and the Ukrainian people bravely defend it. Roman and Yuliana are working to connect Ukraine to the world by providing information from various sources on how to work together to fight this assault on their land.
Hope is still something the overwhelming majority of their people still have, they say. Roman offers encouragement by posting positive pieces to strengthen Ukrainians’ attitudes. One such post was a photo of a sparkling sunny winter day with the caption, “It cannot always be night.”
Neither Curt nor Sharon could ever have imagined that a possible world war would involve one of their own children and his fiancee and the rest of his family. The terror of watching the news every day is eased somewhat by daily communication with them. Those who knew Roman at HHS will remember how much he enjoyed using the weight room there. To have remained fit and strong over the years means that he will be better able to endure the demands of combat, should he be called upon to fight. His father is already manning roadblocks at the age of nearly 60. To fight a war as a civilian, not a soldier, is to show courage at its highest level. As Putin follows Hitler’s and Stalin’s playbooks, no one can forget how almost four million Ukrainians were killed by starvation in the 1930’s. Putin’s war has already cost many lives on both sides.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a former comedian turned world leader, has inspired countless millions with his commitment to his people while he leads his country as a true servant of the people.
In 2017, Curt and Sharon visited Ukraine.There, Roman guided them around his country. The Aasengs met Roman’s family in their village of Liublynets in the western part of the country. They explored Lviv and the capital city of Kyiv and even the Carpathian mountains.
If you would like to help Ukraine, Roman suggests donating money to humanitarian aid organizations such as:
He asks people to give money to help Ukraine as it resists Putin’s aggression. It is an invitation to support Ukraine with actions as well as words, as the world watches what happens next. The war is not some sort of reality-TV show. It is reality.
Photo submitted.
Roman and his family: mother Svitlana holding grand-daughter Sofia, along with his brothers Stas and Dima.
Roman’s father Sasha Polishchuk
