In December we were blessed by the arrival of Sergej and Ira Revenko from the Ukraine. They had been part of our team back in 2004-2009, and then returned to the Ukraine, to Kherson where they were from. Their daughter, Anja, had returned to Bosnia and got married to her high school sweetheart here. They had a son in 2019. Even before the war started we were trying to figure out a way to get Sergej and Ira to BiH, but when the war started they immediately forbid males over 18 and under 60 from leaving the country. This meant Sergej, who was 59, couldn't leave until he turned 60 in November.
They were lucky enough to escape Kherson in April, because they were promised an apartment and a place to stay by a church on the Western border of Ukraine. Unfortunately, when they got there, the only place available to them was in the church sanctuary with 40 other people. It wasn't bad they say, but no place to remain long term. So we were determined to get them to Banja Luka as soon as Sergej turned 60! In the meantime, their younger daughter, Vera, came and joined Anja as there was no restrictions on females leaving. Ira, of course, stayed with Sergej. Their son, Sasha, moved to stay with friends in Kyiv.And then God orchestrated that another of our former colleagues, David, would be near the Ukrainian border in Slovakia in early December, and he had the bright idea to offer to pick them up at the border and bring them to Banja Luka, so they didn't have to travel by public transport! And so it was arranged - David collected them and they all came to Banja Luka (and we got to see David as well!)
