Madison Reporter

A Madison-area poet who immigrated to Wisconsin years ago made an unexpected connection with a recent refugee from Ukraine during a fundraising event last weekend.

Ruslana Westerlund was at the second of two fundraising events on Saturday, April 2.

"Good evening, Madison," Westerlund said to the hundreds who turned out for the fundraiser at The Eastside Club, Channel 3000 reported. "Thank you so much for showing up for my country."

Also in the audience was Marina Sahaida, who escaped the war in Ukraine only last month. The two formed an "instant connection," Westerlund said, adding that that she could "feel the trauma" and all that Sahaida endured, the same trauma suffered by millions back in their shared home country.

"I feel like we've known each other for many years," Sahaida told the news outlet.

Westerlund is a poet and author who 2019 book, "From Borsch to Burgers: A Cross-Cultural Memoir," which describes her life from a childhood working in Soviet-era potato fields to transitions she encountered after immigrating to the United States. Westerlund had been actively fundraising to support Ukrainians suffering from the war.

The first fundraiser on Saturday was at Waunakee Public Library, which hosted Westerlund's event, "Stand With Ukraine."

"I feel very upset about my country and especially my town, was destroyed and damaged – almost all – my house, the house of my friends," Sahaida said.

Sahaida was forced to leave behind her entire family to backpack through Poland to escape Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"My whole family is still in Ukraine," she said. "They're still there and I'm still thinking about them everyday, every morning."

Meeting with Westerlund, even just speaking with her in their native language, was comforting, Sahaida said.

“When you speak your native language, it doesn’t matter where you are, what country, it feels like you're at home," she said.

The hundreds who turned out that evening and at other fundraisers, hers and many across the nation, is a strong reminder for those in Ukraine resisting Russian aggression, "that we're not alone," Westerlund said.

"When the whole world rallies around Ukraine, Ukrainians pass on that strength, and they see it on TV, and they feel stronger, to persevere and continue fighting," she said.

And her connection with Sahaida is one of many that has a direct impact on the war.

"One person connecting with another person is how we stop this war," she said.

Westerlund's fundraising continues. Earlier this week, she posted a link that provides area coffee drinkers with a way to support Ukrainians as they resist Russia's invasion.

"Dear coffee drinkers," Westerlund said in her Wednesday, April 6 Facebook post. "Please order your coffee here to support Ukraine. I serve on the board of Wisconsin Ukrainians and we quickly and efficiently distribute funds to the real needs in Ukraine. Thank you and share this with your friends."