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Refugee in Michigan praying for peace, hoping war in Ukraine ends soon

Svetlana Stahl came to the U.S. 30 years ago and is praying that everyone in Ukraine can find refuge as she has found.

LUNA PIER, Mich. — As the conflict continues overseas, a woman who has ties to both Russia and Ukraine is watching closely from Michigan.

Svetlana Stahl is from Russia but also has family in Ukraine. She says she came to the United States 30 years ago and she is praying that everyone in Ukraine right now can find refuge as she did.

Stahl says seeing what's going on in her family's homeland is hard to put into words. In fact, she still can't believe it's happening.

"Up until probably the day of the war, which was five days ago, my family did not believe the Russians would attack. They just didn't believe it," Stahl said Monday.

RELATED: Understanding the Russia-Ukraine crisis: History of eastern Europe's two largest countries

The last few days have been filled with emotion for Stahl, especially considering her uncle and cousins who are currently in Ukraine.

"I texted my cousin on Facebook messenger. So far, he's answering but he has to be near WiFi," she said.

That's because with everything going on, the internet connection there is less than reliable and it could be gone at any moment.

Stahl's granddaughter says she never paid much attention to what happens over there, despite her roots. But now, she says the war has changed everything.

"It was so out of nowhere, I was so confused as to why this was happening. We could all just have peace if we work together, but sadly it's not like that," Stahl's granddaughter Armani Nagel said.

Ukrainians aren't the only ones in disbelief, Stahl has friends and family in Russia.

"We all speak the same language, we all look alike, it's the same religion," Stahl said. "It's literally the war that people didn't want."

RELATED: Russians hold anti-war rallies amid ominous threats by Putin

As millions flee to safety, there's the possibility they could seek refuge in the states. 

Organizations like US Together Toledo say they're ready to help, but they don't know when that will be.

"Nobody knows, with all the chaos they have there. Nothing is working, a lot of places are closed. Even the people who are in the pipeline. I don't know what's going to happen; if they can still come or not," US Together Toledo employee Corine Dehabey said.

It's that kind of uncertainty that's got Stahl praying for peace and hoping for the best.

If US Together sounds familiar, that's because it was just a few months ago when the organization stepped in to help during the evacuation of Afghanistan.

RELATED: Toledo preparing to welcome 25 Afghan evacuees

As reported, northwest Ohio has extended an invitation to those who are fleeing Ukraine and groups like US Together could be looking for housing options soon. 

WTOL 11 is closely following the situation both here and abroad. Our continuing coverage of the conflict in Ukraine can be found at this link.

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