It’s a heart-wrenching moment.
A Ukrainian father bent on his knees sobbing in the arms of his little girl who has tears streaming down her own cheeks.
The pain is audible.
He is saying goodbye, unsure when he will see or hold her again.
She is heading for safety while he is heading to a warzone — the Ukrainian government has ordered men not to leave the country in case they are needed to fight.
It is images like the one just described that so many watching from afar have felt impossible to detach from and what propelled Calgary’s Dan Kostka to do more than just bear witness to.
“I know what that would feel like, and no parent should have to go through that,” said the father-of-two.
He and his family are in neighbouring Slovakia.
When the war broke out, Kostka saw images of fathers being separated from their families and he felt compelled to act.
“As a father myself, there was no question in my mind,” he said.
“I was so determined. I had to get to the border and help some people.”
He loaded up his car with supplies and food and drove just over 500 kilometres from Bratislava on unfamiliar and winding roads to a small stretch of the Ukrainian border.
The United Nations reports more than 90,000 people have crossed there already seeking safety.
“When I arrived, another volunteer put my name on a list,” Kostka said.
He put his name on a list as a volunteer driver and two days after arriving at the border he met Oksana Kardash and her friend Natasha.
They had travelled 800 kilometres with three children to the border after fleeing their town. They said the morning of the invasion, they were rocked awake by the sound of bombs falling on the nearby airport.
Kostka drove the two women and three children to Bratislava to be with Kardash’s sister.
“After six-and-a-half hours, she was hugging her sister,” he said. “I am just so thankful I was able to provide them some relief.
“They were exhausted, relieved. Several times they said, ‘You are our hero.’ It was really touching to hear that, and I just smiled and accepted it, and at the same time I thought I’m not doing anything really brave.
“The brave people are the people they left behind that are fighting this war.”
After hearing their story, Global News reached out to Kardash via Zoom. The two women and their children sat together piled onto a couch, with weary smiles on their faces.
“Some Slovak people gave us this flat — free without payment,” Kardash said as her her teenage daughter and nephew peered out from behind.
“Everyone is so kind. They gave us clothes and supplies.”
The women told Global News they are glued to their screens from the moment they wake up to the moment they close their eyes, waiting for word from their husbands who are still in Ukraine, helping in the battle against Russia.
Despite their terrifying ordeal and reality, they remain upbeat and still brim with optimism.
“We are brave and our citizens are patriotic,” Kardash said.
“We hope and we believe Ukraine will win, and it won’t just be for just Ukraine — but the whole world.”
Kostka is preparing to head back to the border this weekend. He’s equipped with more supplies.
This time he has diapers, baby food and personal hygiene products as requested by Red Cross staff assisting people seeking refuge. And he will have space in his car.
“You need good people to help other good people, because the war is so ugly,” Kostka said.
War is indeed ugly — but Kostka hopes he can at least try to bring some kindness amidst the turmoil.
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