Red Bank Couple Returns After Ukraine Rescue Mission

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Natasha and David Halbout stood on each side of a banner marking the “USA Stands with Ukraine” gathering at Holmdel Park Sunday, April 23. Natasha’s niece Maiia Dvorina is second from left. Courtesy Halbout family

By Eileen Moon

RED BANK – After weeks of travel, work and worry, Red Bank residents David and Natasha Halbout are back at home, having succeeded in their efforts to rescue Natasha’s disabled sister Alla, 60, and her brother-in-law Vladimir, 81, from their apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine. They also managed to bring their niece Maiia Dvorina, 31, back with them to Red Bank after her precarious journey from Kyiv to Prague, Czech Republic.

They accomplished this thanks to the concern and generosity of many here in the Two River area and the determined efforts of a now-linked chain of donors and volunteers that stretches across the Atlantic into the heart of the war zone. 

The Halbouts are extremely grateful. Now, with their family safe from immediate danger, they have established a Facebook page, Ukrainians of Monmouth County, where newly arrived Ukrainians can connect with Ukrainian-Americans and others who can help them adjust to life here as they wait and hope for the time they can return to their home nation.

The Halbouts are also gathering another shipment of trauma first aid kits to be sent to Ukraine next week.

In the midst of the misery engulfing Natasha’s native country, she and David have been heartened by the support they received, the patriotism they witnessed, and the courage of thousands of Ukrainians now fighting for their homeland.

In the Czech Republic, one of the western countries now sheltering Ukrainian refugees, there were Ukrainian flags everywhere, Natasha said. “People are very united. There’s a spirit to help that was very amazing to see.”

Natasha’s nephew Matvey lives in Prague and was ready to welcome his parents. Maiia, his sister, was staying with him until Natasha arrived from the United States.

When she traveled to the Czech Republic March 8, Natasha carried 90 pounds of military supplies and children’s clothing that was delivered to the Ukrainian border by volunteers and distributed to the 128th Military Brigade and to an orphanage housing the children of those recently killed in the attacks by Russia. 

When David traveled to Prague March 21, he carried four bags totaling more than 280 pounds of supplies for the military – boots, bandages, binoculars, medicines, tourniquets and other requested items. 

At Newark Airport, Lufthansa Airlines waived the baggage fees after David explained his mission and showed officials the article about their efforts that appeared in the March 18 issue of The Two River Times.

“It was such a relief because it was a lot of money,” he said.

David, a native of Normandy, France, is a furniture designer who teaches at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Natasha, a native of Kyiv, is a textile artist who designs clothing and accessories using natural dyes she makes herself. She worked as a psychiatric nurse at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank for 20 years. 

As they labored to rescue their family, they knew they couldn’t travel empty-handed. They wanted to deliver what aid they were able to in the process.

They shared their plan on Facebook, asking for donations of military supplies from friends and family. After many years in the United States, they knew the idea might seem startling in a country with a strong and well-funded military.

“Imagine Americans collecting money to dress the (United States) Army,” Natasha reflected.

In Ukraine, a relatively poor country, thousands of volunteers are now fighting, and military clothing and equipment remain in short supply.

On social media sites across the world, a humanitarian mission to equip the Ukrainian army and help the civilian population continues around the clock.

Maiia Dvorina, left, escaped the war in Ukraine by making a treacherous trip from Kyiv to Prague with the long-distance help of her aunt and uncle, Natasha and David Halbout. They recently returned to Natasha’s native Ukraine to help her sister and husband make a similar journey. Courtesy Halbout family

As they tried to make the connections they needed to safely get their family out of harm’s way, Natasha and David contacted friends and nonprofit agencies, sourced supplies and spent hours on social media sites like Telegram to piece together their plans.

Far from the city of Kyiv, people were sharing constantly changing information about trains and taxis, air raids, martial law, sources of food and medicine, preferred routes out of the city. Maiia’s journey out of Ukraine took four days, complicated by martial law restrictions, rocket strikes, air raid warnings, and a series of travel snafus that prolonged her trip. The trains were packed shoulder to shoulder with room only to stand up, Maiia said.

It would have been a risky trip for Vladimir and Alla, Maiia’s parents. Alla relies on a wheelchair and needs insulin for her diabetes as well as high blood pressure medication. 

“My sister didn’t have the medications for her diabetes and high blood pressure,” Natasha said. “My sister was going to have a stroke.”

When Atlantic Highlands resident Angus Mclean Rennie heard about the Halbout’s efforts, he was able to put them in touch with Taras Fito and Mykhailo Boyko, the owners of Ukraine’s biggest peanut butter company, who have redirected their company’s resources to help the military and aid the civilian population. Using their company’s established logistical network, they have been able to acquire supplies in Poland and Germany for distribution in Ukraine.

They have continued to pay the employees of their company as they each take an active role in supplying Ukrainians in need of help.

In a nation under attack, stripped of normal routines and once-dependable infrastructure, it is a formidable task.

Thanks to Fito and Boyko, Natasha was able to arrange a desperately needed delivery of insulin for her sister. 

“I was already feeling more calm,” Natasha said.

But even as the situation worsened, Natasha’s sister and her husband remained reluctant to leave Kyiv.

Vladimir’s reluctance was understandable, if not wise. “He didn’t think it was dangerous,” David said. “He was watching Russian TV. He was listening to the propaganda that (Russia) was coming peacefully. Long story short, it was very difficult to convince him.”

On March 15, a rocket struck the apartment house next to theirs, killing two people and blowing out the windows in their home. That was enough to persuade them. But an arduous train journey was out of the question.

A world away in Red Bank, David was able to arrange for a car to drive the couple to the Polish border and then on to their son’s home in Prague.

At the Polish border, Alla fell from her wheelchair, injuring her shoulder and back. Later, while showering at a hotel, she fell again, necessitating a trip to the emergency room. 

“The situation was precarious, especially for my sister, who already was an invalid,” Natasha said.

At that point she was bedridden and unable to climb stairs.  

“We had to find a medical bed and walker and toilet chair,” all available only at medical specialty stores where much of the stock is depleted, as it is across the European Union.

After many attempts, the Halbouts were finally able to secure the needed items and make Alla and Vladimir as comfortable as possible in Matvey’s house. 

Now that they are back in the U.S. and adjusting to this “new normal,” Natasha admits to feeling “kind of useless” after expending all her waking hours on bringing her family to safety.

“I was hoping to feel relieved after evacuating my family from the war zone,” she continued. “Somehow when friends congratulate me and sigh with relief, ‘Now all your family is safe,’ it does not feel like a victory. I feel very safe in the USA, and I feel helpless at the same time, seeing my homeland torn by missiles.”

Meanwhile, Maiia, who speaks five languages including English, is settling in at their home in Red Bank. She has already signed up for a library card and is hoping to do volunteer work with senior citizens.

President Biden extended the eligibility time period for recently arrived Ukrainians like Maiia to apply for Protected Status, which would allow those eligible to legally work and to stay in the U.S. up to 18 months. 

Eventually, Maiia hopes to return to Ukraine, but “it will not be so soon,” she said. “It is too dangerous.”

“Maiia loves Ukraine,” Natasha said. “She wants to return to her country.”

David and Natasha are hoping the Facebook group they’ve started will help Maiia and others recently arrived connect with Ukrainians and Ukrainian-Americans and feel more at home. 

“I know firsthand that when you move to a new country, it is very difficult to meet friends and not to feel isolated,” said David, who moved to the United States from France many years ago.

“I hope that the Facebook page will help to provide a sense of stability and belonging.”

Having brought their family to safety, they are now working to help the many thousands of Ukrainians who remain in danger.

“I am among many Ukrainians residing abroad who are putting monumental efforts to bring the necessary help,” said Natasha, now a U.S. citizen. “I feel that the people that are in Ukraine now are suffering the most.”

Lines from an Emily Dickinson poem, “If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain;” are resonating with the family as they rededicate themselves to doing whatever they can to help.

“What we do is a small part, but maybe it can save a human life,” Natasha said.

The Halbouts have posted additional photos and information about their efforts on David’s Facebook page which can be found by searching “David Halbout” at facebook.com. Find the Ukrainians of Monmouth County Facebook group by searching “Ukrainians of Monmouth County – NJ” at facebook.com. The Halbouts are also able to accept cash donations via the following sites:

Paypal at paypal.me/DHalbout 
Venmo @David-Halbout
Zelle: 732-403-0400

For additional information, David can be reached by phone at 732-403-0400 or email at Frenchfixllc@gmail.com.

The article originally appeared in the April 28 – May 4, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.