Displaced Ukrainian Kateryna Karpenko sits on the bed in her simply furnished Calgary apartment on Sept. 19, 2024. The web developer has been in the city for roughly one year after stops in Germany and Regina, Sask., and said Calgary now feels like home. Brent Calver/Postmedia

Displaced by a seemingly endless war, Ukrainians in Calgary eye a permanent exodus

While many who've fled war in Ukraine feel a longing for their homeland, they're coming to the realization they now belong in Canada

by · Calgary Herald

From her home near Kyiv, Kateryna Karpenko saw one of the first acts of a long, gruelling war and predicts she might not go back even after the guns fall silent.

She recalls seeing Russian helicopters descending on Hostomel Airport on Feb. 24, 2022, ferrying Russian commandos who hoped to pave the way for a swift capture of the Ukrainian capital.

“I was watching through my window, the black Russian helicopters and heard explosions … I was hiding in my bathroom with my cat,” said the 36-year-old.