A few dresses and an extra pair of boots are among the few items Svitlana Trofymchuk had packed in a suitcase for her month-long trip from Kyiv to Toronto.
The 49-year-old Ukrainian businesswoman used to study English in Canada and was planning to visit some of the friends she made.
But Trofymchuk had no idea when she left on Feb. 16 that her city would come under attack, and that she would be unable to return safely.
“I don’t want to be [a] refugee because I hope my country will be free,” said Trofymchuk.
“But I can’t go back to my home.”
A firefighter walks outside a
