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The Jewish Home | MARCH 31, 2022
Israel today
Rescuing Anna by rafi Sackville
Natan under a sign that reads “Food, free of charge for Ukrainian refugees”
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OctOber 29, 2015 | the Jewish Home
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or the many expatriate Ukrainians living in Ma’alot, the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine is more than just news items that keeps them glued to their televisions; it is visceral and heartbreaking. Many of them have family members who are currently caught up in the war. By my calculations, almost 50% of my students are from families who are from Russia or Ukraine. During one of my recent classes, the conversation turned to the current war in Ukraine. Eden, a 10th grader, mentioned that her father Natan, and his spouse Ludmila, were at that very moment on the Polish border with Ukraine, where he had planned to meet up with Anna, Eden’s 13-year-old step-sister. Their plan was to meet up with her just inside Ukraine and bring her back to Israel. Wrom nrael ot gnitnae, I met up with Natan after his return to Israel. We sat on his couch in his modest apartment where he told me about his adventure. Natan Goldgur is a young-looking 43-year-old, who came to Israel from Ukraine in 1990 just as the USSR was breaking up. He was born in Khmel-
nytskyi, named after the infamous 15th century tyrant. Upon their arrival in Israel, his family moved to Nahariya, before moving to Ma’alot a few years ago. For the last 31 years, he has lived a peaceful life. In telling me his story, he mentioned more than once that he had been under a lot of stress, which is hard to imagine,
is married, and his wife had just given birth. Anna, Ludmila’s young daughter, was staying with her father in Zhitomir, not far from Lviv. The bombing there suddenly became intense with factories and a hospital targeted. The plan had been to get Anna out earlier. However, due to
According to Natan, they were yelled at for being foolish enough to contemplate crossing into Ukraine.
as he is of calm disposition and quietly rational. In the weeks leading up to the war, he was skeptical that Russia would invade. When the war did begin in late February, his fears were quickly realized. For one, Ludmila’s eldest son living in Zhitomir was unable to leave, as he is of fighting age and must uniform up. Besides, he
Covid, many people like Anna were hampered in traveling freely. In fact, it was because of the pandemic Ludmila had spent the previous six months separated from Anna. In early March, Natan gathered his family and announced that he and Ludmila had decided to fly to the border to get Anna out of the Ukraine. Eden and Tomer
would move in with their mother. They flew to Warsaw, from where they drove east 280 miles to Hrushiv, a border crossing point a few miles from the Polish border. Hrushiv was the border crossing most convenient for Natan and Anna’s father. Knowing how unstable the situation was, they were prepared to improvise; Natan would travel to another crossing point if they came across any trouble. At least, that was their plan. In the meantime, Anna’s father would drive her southwest to Hrushiv from Zhitomir, a 450-mile journey. Zhitomir had been bombed. Anna had heard the commotion and was pleased to leave. Natan and Ludmila reached the Polish border but were prevented from crossing into Ukraine by Polish officers. The car they rented didn’t have the correct paperwork. Ludmila began to cry. She explained to the officers why she needed to cross. According to Natan, they were yelled at for being foolish enough to contemplate crossing into Ukraine. Eventually, they were let through. Natan says that it was easy enough
