A little girl has received an early birthday present after she was reunited with her Ukrainian father whom she has not seen since April when she and her mother fled the war to take up shelter in Ireland.
Sofiia Badrak, who is due to turn six on Saturday, rushed in to the arms of her father, Stanislav, at Brook Lodge National School in Glanmire, Co Cork after he surprised her by showing up at her classroom at lunchtime today.
Stanislav and his wife Yuliia are musicians. Yuliia was employed by the National Orchestra of Ukraine prior to the war whilst Stanislav is a singer, pianist and composer with the National Academic Choir of Ukraine.
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Yuliia said that it was a very exciting moment for Sofiia to see her beloved father Stanislav having been separated by the war for six months.
"He flew in to Cork Airport. Stan my husband (since 2014) has been in Ukraine. In Ireland he will be one week only. And then he will go back to Ukraine.
"It is sad but it is our life. For Sofiia it is a surprise. We only have Sofiia. She is six on Saturday. It (him coming) is her present. We are so happy."
Yuliia, who is from Kyiv, said that her daughter likes school and is adjusting as well as can be expected to life in Ireland. She is grateful for the support of locals and her fluency in English is improving by the day.
School principal at Brooklodge NS, Joe Nolan, said that it was nice to have a "real feel good" story in these troubling times.
"It is lovely. Sofiia is here since April. It is her birthday in two days so he (Stan) has been able to come over for a short period and they are going to have a birthday party for her.
Her mother Yuliia is a musician with the National Orchestra of the Ukraine prior to all of this. It has been tough. She is one of four families within the one complex in Glanmire. It is 21 people in the building including adults and children.
They are about a twenty minute walk from here so at the moment they have free transport to school from Bus Eireann. We are delighted for them today. It has been very tough for them. "
Mr Nolan says the children who have come to the school from Ukraine have shown extraordinary resilience.
"We have eight Ukrainian children in the school. They are settling in as well as could be expected given all the circumstances. They are very resilient. We have a great staff and community behind them. Between parents and the other kids they have all helped the new pupils to settle in very well in fairness."
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