DURHAM, N. C. (RNS) — They arrived with four suitcases on a winding road that took them from their local city of Odessa, Moldova, Romania, France, New York and finally North Carolina.
Since their arrival, the young Ukrainian couple have found work, a car, furniture and family parts, thanks in large part to American Jews in the Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill regions.
On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, which begins Tuesday, October 4, many members of the Jewish network here have expressed a renewed willingness to the couple, Vladislav Bedereu and Elizabeth (Liza) Orel, rooted in the Jewish price of being worried. for the stranger, adding refugees.
In July, Bedereu, 33, a ballet dancer and opera singer, and Orel, 23, a stage actress, abandoned their lives and livelihoods in Odessa.
They landed in New York but arrived in North Carolina four days later because Bedereu’s friend and former colleague teaches ballroom dancing at a nearby Fred Astaire studio. They rent a room to a circle of exiled Russian relatives living in Chapel Hill.
But it is on the Jewish network that they depend most.
“They gave us a homely atmosphere,” Orel said, referring to the efforts of North Carolina Jews toward them. “This is very important to us because, of course, we miss home. “
Last year, American Jews, like others of other faiths, watched in horror as Russia invaded Ukraine and attempted to annex part of its eastern front. Tens of thousands of people died and up to 7 million sought refuge, mainly in neighbouring countries.
For American Jews, Ukraine is any country. It is the position from which many Ashkenazi Jews may hint at their family’s travel to America.
Many grew up hearing that the United States had not done enough to save Europe’s Jews in World War II. Reaching Ukrainian refugees is an opportunity to do better.
“There’s not much that separates us,” said Adam Goldstein, a doctor in the Chapel Hill family circle who has helped the couple, allowing them to borrow a car and putting them in touch with medical and other providers. “I think we have to do everything we can, knowing how complicated it is for them. “
Goldstein invited the couple to attend Yom Kippur along with their circle of relatives at Beth El Synagogue in Durham. He put them in touch with Jewish for Good, the Jewish federation of Durham-Chapel Hill, which organizes a car donation and provided other supplies.
The couple cried when they saw all the boxes.
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Orel and Bedereu have a Jewish grandfather. Growing up, Orel attended a Jewish school. Later, he planned movies and other occasions at a Jewish cultural center. Bedereu, like many Ukrainians emerging from years of devout repression in the former Soviet bloc, is less versed in Judaism.
The couple said they follow Jewish traditions: lighting Shabbat candles, celebrating the holiday, even if they are not religious.
For now, they are satisfied with painting kosher food on a food truck owned by Chabad, the Hasidic Jewish organization on the campus of Duke University. They dream, eventually, of finding paintings in their own profession.
The COVID pandemic and then the war made the couple’s careers impossible. Even as cultural events began to reopen, the Russian invasion led the Ukrainian government to suppress cultural depictions of Russian classics such as The Nutcracker through Russian composer Tchaikovsky. Even the Russian language, spoken by most Odessa residents, is now frowned upon as Ukraine seeks to build its own distinctive cultural heritage.
For Bedereu and Orel, who were well informed and trained in the united world of Russian and Ukrainian ballet and theater, it was a double blow.
Bedereu, who in the past toured with “The Great Russian Nutcracker of the Moscow Ballet” (now renamed “NUTCRACKER!Magic of Christmas Ballet”), said the idea to move to the United States came from one of his overseas tours. with the company.
He then suffered a back injury that prevented him from dancing. Ukrainian men of service age are not allowed to leave the country. But Bedereu’s injury allowed him to avoid compulsory military service. He found work in an opera company and later as a rhythmic gymnastics coach. Wait to locate similar paintings here as well.
Orel hasn’t painted for a while.
“I was absolutely surprised by their positive attitude,” said Zalmy Dubinsky, a Chabad rabbi who runs a center for young Jewish professionals in Raleigh and hosted the couple’s Shabbat dinners. “They lost everything. Liza couldn’t even get her master’s degree. Just watching them adapt and bond socially and have an incredibly positive attitude towards their stage is truly amazing.
The couple came to the United States under a personal sponsorship program set up by Biden’s leadership called United for Ukraine. To date, more than 50,000 Ukrainians have come to the United States through this initiative, which entitles them to remain in humanitarian assistance. Probation for up to two years. (Another 20,000 Ukrainians arrived along the U. S. -Mexico border. )Bedereu and Orel can work and get benefits, such as food stamps, but they don’t have to get citizenship.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity,” Orel said. We hope that after two years we can here. “
For the Jewish network in the Triangle region, it is imperative to intensify the influx of refugees.
We need to do everything we can, knowing how complicated it is for them,” Goldstein said. “I hope they can feel that this is a network where they can grow, thrive and contribute. “
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