X-Culture Pen-Pal Ukraine Program

The Ukraine-USA Pen Pal Program connects individuals from Ukraine with peers around the world, offering support to young people in Ukraine during these challenging times. Through the program, participants can take their minds off the war, practice their English language skills, and build friendships across borders. Additionally, the program provides a unique opportunity for children worldwide to learn about Ukraine, support their peers, and develop new friendships while practicing English.

To showcase the talents of these young students, the program and X-Culture organized a contest inviting submissions of essays, poems, illustrations, and photos on the theme “What the past year has meant to me”. The contest resulted in inspiring entries, and the winners are proudly presented by the Ukraine-USA Pen Pal Program and X-Culture.

The Organizing Committee

Dr. Vasyl Taras

Dr. Vas Taras is a Professor of International Business at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
He is the Vice President-Administration of the Academy of International Business and the founder of the X-Culture Project. He received his Ph.D. in International HR and International Business from the University of Calgary, Canada.

Chris Mead

Chris Mead is the founder of the Ukraine-USA Pen Pal Project and the co-creator with X-Culture of the contest “What the Past Year Has Meant to Me.” Both projects depended enormously on the keen advice and generous cooperation of Dr. Vasyl Taras and his colleagues at X-Culture.
Mead, who worked at the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives for 16 years, wrote the only history of American chambers, The Magicians of Main Street: America and its Chambers of Commerce, 1768-1945. He received a B.A. in English at Oberlin College and an MBA at Stanford University.

Rafael Akira Tamashiro

Rafael Akira Tamashiro holds a degree in Business Administration from the State University of Campinas, Brazil.
He is a former X-Culture student, Coach, and Senior Coach and has been with X-Culture for the past 7 years.
Since 2020, he has been the X-Culture Academy Coordinator, a program for under 18.
Rafael also has 2+ years of experience in Procurement at multinational companies.

Amay Arora

Amay Arora is a high-school senior in Washington, D.C., at School Without Walls High School and a second-year Associate of Arts student in The George Washington University Early College Program. He has been interning with the X-Culture Ukraine-USA Pen Pal Program, where he manages the technology platform connecting Ukrainians with people from around the world. Amay wants to pursue a career in architecture and civil engineering, and build future resilient and sustainable communities.

Winners

Photos

Students 10 – 13 years old

2nd Place

Anna Miniailo
Age: 10

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Chumak

1st Place

Veronika Kirilova
Age: 10

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Tetiana Shandyba

Students 14 – 17 years old

2nd Place

Danil Saienko
Age: 14

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Chumak

1st Place

Roman Viktorovich Poselskiy
Age: 14

Liuboml Lyceum, Teacher: Ms. Larysa Shynkaruk

Videos

Students 10 – 13 years old

2nd Place

Darya Andriivna Fedyshyn
Age: 11

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Chumak

1st Place

Karina Shvedchenko
Age: 11

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Tetiana Shandyba

Students 14 – 17 years old

2nd Place

Olexander Lisnyak
Age: 14

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Tetiana Shandyba

1st Place

Vasilisa Samokhina
Age: 15

Chernihiv School #12, Teacher: Ms. Vita Anatoliivna Byvalkevych

Poems

Students 10 – 13 years old

1st Place

Our Ukraine is like a native mother,
we are ready to fight for freedom…
And every day, I thank the military for peaceful skies,
quiet nights and days .
And I BOLDLY SAY GLORY to Ukraine!!!

Oleksandra Moroz
Age: 11

Liuboml Lyceum, Teacher: Ms. Larysa Shynkaruk

Students 14 – 17 years old

1st Place

Darkness is now my truly friend,
And I don’t see in it when war will end.
I crave the light and warmth, for who?
That’s for my nation and my country too.
My enemies can’t see me in the dark,
I would be save from missiles and maybe even tank.
I want to live,be proud of Ukraine
And I don’t want for everyone forget my name.
Not only mine, both his and hers, come on!
And, if that’s necessary, I can put a helmet on.

Veronika Priakhina
Age: 14

Lviv Gymnasium “Prestige”, Teacher: Ms. Zoryana Terlyuk

Essays

Students 10 – 13 years old

Honorable Mentions

Hello, my friends from faraway America!

My name is Polina. I live in the city of Okhtyrka. This year was very difficult for me, as well as for all Ukrainians. I remember how on February 24, 2023, my mother woke me up and said that the war had begun. Explosions were heard everywhere and we ran to the neighbor’s basement, where we slept, ate and lived for two weeks. After the shelling, the light went out, so mom and dad heated water on a gas stove, poured it into plastic bottles and put my brother and I under the blanket, and it got warmer that way. When it became very scary and the enemy plane dropped bombs every day, my father took my mother and brother to a nearby town, and he himself returned to work in Okhtyrka. When our town was liberated, my father took us home. I was very happy. In the summer, my dream came true, my parents gave me a kitten for my birthday. Now it is my love and my anti-stress. I started studying in the fall, but you can’t go to school, so everyone studies online. It is very difficult (because after the shelling there was often no light and Internet) and at the time it is very interesting because I can study together with my kitten, who is present in my lessons every day. We even do homework together. That’s how I found a true friend during the war – my cat Bella, whom I still love very much. I dream that the war will end and I, with my parents, brother and Bella, will be able to go to the sea in our Crimea. Thank you for reading my story. Glory to Ukraine.

Polina Romanivna Bublyk
Age: 11

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Tetiana Shandyba

Hello! My name is Diana, I live in a small town called Okhtyrka.

About a year ago I lived an ordinary life: went to school, walked with my friends and couldn’t image I would check up the application “Air Alarm” every 10 minutes. When I was a child, I liked to visit my great grandmother. She told different stories about WW|| like it was yesterday. I didn’t understand her feelings when she mentioned Germans, about how they walked around the village and stayed in my great grandmother and her fellow villagers’ houses. I listened to them in such stories with a great interest although now I understand why she told them so rarely.
That morning on February 24, I was awakened by a loud explosions. Seemed that not only the glass in the window frame trembled, but also the whole house. I saw my parents who were lying on the floor and restless discussing something. I refused to believe my mother’s words: “You won’t go to school. The war has been started”, but the new wave of explosions said for itself. It’s impossible to describe that horror. I was used to hearing regular sirens. When I heard it at first, it seemed to me that it wasn’t sounding out of my house, but in my head. I was terrified that. Every minute I had a panic attack. I was more afraid for my family than for myself. I with my 4 year old sister stayed home alone when our parents drove to the shop and gas station. Phone connection was awful, I was lying with my sister on the floor and didn’t know where my parents were.
Several days, spending in the basement of our familiars dragged on endlessly. As my best friend left town and went to Lviv I could chat with him only by phone. I miss my friend so much. I was distracted myself by drawing. Now I can’t do it.
Then we went to my grandparents. Our mates went to Poland in 3 days after the was had started. During the aerial bombardment of Okhtyrka I was lying on the floor with headphones on not to hear the explosions. I just listened to loud rock like Evanescence.
A month has passed, I wasn’t afraid of explosions of BM-21, air bombs, even rockets anymore. I didn’t care. I stopped to call my best friend and draw. Someone is growing sadness and my hatred for the enemy is becoming. I have always been, am and will be Ukrainian and never forget what I felt then and the ruined town, which was beautiful and picturesque, always reminds us about events those days.
My great grandmother told stories about Second World War to me and I’ll told stories about Russian-Ukrainian war to my great grandsons and great granddaughters.
Let the world know what we felt and even Mr. Putin won’t eat my homework! Glory to Ukraine!

Diana Makarenko Oleksandrivna
Age: 13

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Tetiana Shandyba

3rd Place

What the Past year has meant to me.

That is hard for me to talk about the past year because I haven’t been living during it. I’ve just existed, I’ve just tried to survive. I didn’t believe that war could come to my country, because in the third century human’s life has become the most important value and people communicate and come to an agreement in a peaceful way. But I was wrong. russians invaded.
From the very beginning it was a period of fear, anxiety and despair. The hardest thing for me was to leave my home. And I couldn’t accept the fact, that it was possible that there would be no way home, that my city could fall. But it didn’t, it survived. My Irpin has become a bone in russians throat, as it was during the Second World War for german fascists. I could never imagine how strong, willing, well-organized and courages Ukrainians are. Horrification, terror, shelling and blackouts couldn’t stop and break us down.
Today I don’t feel fear. Today I am grateful. I thank God for being alive. I thank God for not being raped, tortured or killed in front of my parents’ eyes. I am grateful to have my family and friends alive. I am grateful for living at my home again. I thank Ukrainian Army and every single soldier for protecting me. I’m grateful for all the help and support my country gets from all the world. I’m grateful for all hard and patient volunteers’ work. I thank to every medical worker, teacher, electrician, vet and every single worker for the work they do to make our life better and easier today.
Thanks to this year I’ve understood, that evil really exists and it can attack and kill you any time for no reason. That is not enough to be a good, obedient, peaceful and loving person to live safe and happy life. There are people, who are not humans at all and have nothing common with anything that is humane. I am always in readiness. But also thanks to this year, I’ve understood how much I love, need and appreciate everyone and everything I have.
P.S. small letters are used for purpose.

Yeva Moravska
Age: 13, Ukraine

Irpin Lyceum #3, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Matviienko

2nd Place

02/24/2022

This date and the feelings that I experienced this year, they will be remembered for a long time. This is such a passage in life that makes you fight to celebrate Independence Day on August 24 and be proud of your country.
February 24…. I woke up from the whisper of my mother who said that most likely the war had begun. I had a feeling of misunderstanding as everything was too confusing, wasn’t it just a threat?
I didn’t have time to figure out how my mother and I heard an explosion. It was so difficult to perceive what happened, because for the first time I heard something like that. Difficult. No one understood what to do. I was terribly afraid for my family because there were explosions everywhere. I wanted to fall on my knees and scream that “I want to live so much” in the hope that someone would hear. We slept on the cold floor between 2 walls. There was heavy shelling at night, and when we all sat together in that small room and heard very loud noises literally a couple of meters away from us, I was filled with fear. It was hard to realize that I could do nothing about that.
On March 4, we went to Khmelnitsky. I didn’t have friends there and everyone looked at me as if they hated me. I didn’t understand why it was so. I wasn’t upset because the main thing was that we didn’t hear explosions anymore.
Somewhere in April, we learned the news that a rocket hit my grandparents’ house. We immediately started calling grandpa as he stayed there. He remained alive. However, my parrots said goodbye to life. It was painful and difficult to come to terms with the fact that there was no more home.
About a week after that, I was having an online lesson and heard that in the kitchen my mother seemed to be crying. I went out to see what was happening. My dad was going to the war. Then I was so speechless that it darkened in my eyes. I wanted to dissuade him, but I simply didn’t have anything to say as I didn’t understand everything and I didn’t understand this life. I wanted to sob, but I didn’t have the strength. I felt emptiness more than anything, as if feelings had ended, but inside I wanted to cry and cry.
If you think that all this has broken us, then you are mistaken, Ukrainians are indestructible. Furthermore, I am proud of my country and my nationality.

Dominika Chernushenko
Age: 12

French International School, Kyiv, Teacher: Ms. Bohdana Khymych

1st Place

Good day!
Today, I will tell you about the war in my country and about the most terrible year in the life of every Ukrainian. My name is Kirill. And at the beginning of the war I was ten years old. I was an ordinary child who studied well at school and loved karate very much. We usually learned about the war in history lessons. Not even thinking that one day she will come to our house. But…On the twenty-fourth of February, everything changed. At five in the morning my mother woke me up and said that the war had started. I was very scared and did not understand what to do. But within a few hours, Russian tanks were driving through our city. It was unbearable. We sat in the cold basement both day and night. We heard constant explosions, but the scariest thing was the Russian planes that bombed our city at night. Everything around exploded and burned. We were helpless. And very soon they heard about the first deaths in the city.
I know what it’s like to leave my home, without knowing if we will return here again. And for the first month I thought that I would never be able to laugh again in my life.

I didn’t have a birthday, Christmas tree or Christmas this year. I asked my parents to give these funds to our soldiers. I will never forget this pain and never forgive this war. I hate those who decided that it is possible to kill thousands of people with impunity. Those who ruined my childhood. I don’t go to school and I don’t talk to my friends like I used to. And my relatives are now at war. I want the whole world to know about the pain of every Ukrainian. I so dream that it will end soon. So that children do not die every day in Ukraine. And never hear sirens and explosions again. I want so much to have time to be a happy child.

Kyrylo Oleksandrovich Ovcharenko
Age: 11

Okhtyrka Secondary School #1, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Chumak

Students 14 – 17 years old

Honorable Mentions

A year of war has an important impact on people’s lives and society as a whole.

A year of war can mean many different things to people, depending on the context. For example, war can mean a threat to security, fear, longing, and the pain of loss. At the same time, war can strengthen feelings of national unity, solidarity, and heroism. This is how our lyceum helps soldiers and makes trench candles on the front lines. Not indifferent children go to the designated place and make them with love and joy, while others help with materials such as cardboard, wax and cans.
Fortunately, I live where there were no occupations, hostilities and airstrikes, and this is a reason to thank the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but still, in the first month of the war, we hid in bunkers, now of course we have adapted to this situation in the country. Our spirit is also strengthened by the songs of our extremely talented singers and foreign singers, catchy sayings and new culture.
For many people, a year of war is one of the most difficult trials, because war can lead to the destruction of homes, the loss of jobs and the loss of loved ones. At the same time, the year of war can also reflect the importance of family, friends and community, as they can be a source of support and care
For society as a whole, a year of war has a lasting impact on the economy, politics, and culture. The war led to a decrease in economic growth, job losses, and reduced investment. At the same time, the war also increases the significant development of science and technology, without the need for new solutions and innovation can be high.
In general, the year of war is the first moment in human history that shows the complexity and vulnerability of human life, as well as the strength of human will and ability to survive and recover.

Viktoria Bondarenko
Age: 14

Tarashcha Academic Lyceum, Teacher: Ms. Olena Rybalko

I’m extremely lucky. My house is fine and my family is alive. But the war still made a big impact on my life.
I was forced to live in a basement for two weeks, without shower and normal food. The basement was really cold, I had caught a cold before we finally could leave. We don’t have a car, so we needed to find one, in order to have a chance to escape together with our cat, because animals were not allowed in trains. Then we’ve been driving for three days. Finaly, we reached Lviv.
I thought we were safe, but I was wrong. In the next couple of days Russian Federation launched more than one hundred missiles. They targeted apartments and houses. We understood that we needed to leave Ukraine.
It was a very hard decision, we’ve been living in Ukraine for our whole lives. My mom bought bus tickets to Poznań and we started out journey to Poland. Our drive lasted for 28 hours, we couldn’t go to the bathroom or even leave the bus. My eyes were sore from crying so much.
We are lucky that we have family in Poland, my aunt and uncle had moved there two years before the war started. They persuaded the house owner to rent us an apartment for a cheaper price.
I now know that polish is extremely similar to ukrainian. Polish people could understand me perfectly fine. They were all so kind, so caring, so understanding. I cried tears of joy. I felt happy. I felt relieved.
But I still missed my home.
Three month passed, we decided it was time to return to Ukraine. We packed our stuff and bought bus tickets. This time the drive was a little shorter, 24 hours. We returned to Lviv, and eventually to Kyiv.
Around that time my uncle was drafted into the military. He didn’t try to escape. He’s an actor, so he doesn’t have a lot of experience, but he still wanted to help. I’m proud to have such a great uncle. My family is not religious, but the only two things we can do right now are donating to our army and praying. My brother is going to turn 18 this fall, I’m scared, that he’ll need to go into the army too. He is studying to become a doctor, so he’ll be useful, but he’s still a child, even at 18 years old.
I have been at home for 8 months now, the alarms are going off almost every day, but it’s worth it.
Before the war I was thinking about studying in other countries. But now, I want to stay here. I want to help build a new, better and stronger Ukraine!

Sofiia Gennadiivna Skrypka
Age: 16

Kyiv; Teacher: Ms. Olha Kachan

3rd Place

My name is Kyryl. I live in the most beautiful and picturesque city in Ukraine. It’s Chernihiv. You can enjoy the fragrance of fresh air in our boundless fields, a stunning view of ancient monuments and the enormous hospitality of local people. In geographic lesson I was told thatp Ukraine bordered Russia in the north. For me it meant nothing, just the general well-known fact. Now my opinion has changed. Since November 2022 my mum & dad began fussing. They were anxious a lot. It was really annoying. On the 23d of February I was given the task to learn the verse ” The swans of motherhood” by Vasyl Symonenko. I’m not keen on learning poetry. It was a real pain in the neck for me to keep all those lines in mind. Not a word stayed in my memory. On the 24d of February I woke up early in the morning & heard several explosions. My mum started packing, my dad was watching news and my younger sisters were still sleeping. I remember all those columns of military equipment rushing in our street. Firstly It was a sort of adventure, I thought that the action movie was shot and I was the main character in it. We moved to our relatives’ apartments. My parents told me that it was safer there. I didn’t mind, cause my best friend lived there. We chatted, played different computer games, ate all that yummy fast food. On the 26 of February we came back home. In an hour our district was bombed. Me and my sisters hid under the stairs. My mum was praying, sisters were crying, my dad covered us saying some rough words, but I was trying to recall the lines from the swans of motherhood”: “You’ll grow up, my son, and start upon your way,
Many dormant dangers will mature that day…”. All of them popped up in my memory immediately. Unfortunately I turned to that verse very often cause we spent three long weeks in the city which was being ruined by all types of weapons. This poem is a sanctuary for me. Every word is associated with reminiscences, which I’m trying to forget. The war hasn’t finished yet but I hope that one day these lines: “Always they’re with you, wherever you go —Your mother’s eyes, the home you used to know” will be linked with a flavor of victory.

Kyryl Osipov
Age: 14

Chernihiv School #12, Teacher: Ms. Nataliia Bazilevska

2nd Place

I will never forget that waltz… The last waltz… The waltz that was a harbinger of the war. On February 23, I went to school.
It was an ordinary school day, we sat in cozy classrooms, chatted, wrote our classwork. After the 3rd lesson, we had to go dance the waltz to the upcoming graduation. However, I was overcome with anxiety… I don’t know why… Many Ukrainian news outlets reported that a war might begin. We laughed at these messages and did not attach much importance to them. But…on the twenty-fourth of February, our perception of the world changed. Worried parents ran into the room at 5 a.m with the words: “Son, the war has begun! Not far from us, the affected objects!” Everything changed in one day… And then… Shelling began. We saw trails of fire and smoke in the air, we hid in basements, we screamed in terror. Everything disappeared immediately: school, communication, friends, income, a peaceful life… I remember how they called me to say goodbye… Washing with tears, we said the warmest words to each other, realizing that they could be the last for us… Every day we were informed about the shelling of Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Kherson and other cities of Ukraine. We understood that it would soon come to us, to our native Odessa. And so it happened… Daily air raids, weekly flights of missiles to the region or even the city itself… In the third month of the war, an enemy rocket hit the Riviera, the most popular shopping center in my district, knocking out the windows of many nearby houses. The next day we saw the scene: only charred wreckage in the place where we went to the cinema and McDonald’s half a year ago…
Many of my friends left for other countries. I saw many of them then, on February 23 for the last time. I stayed in Ukraine with my family and actively participate in the life of the city, in particular as a member of the Parliament of high school students. We did a lot of volunteer work. I especially remember the events of this winter. Sabotage units handed over the coordinates of the location of energy infrastructure facilities. And after that… Constant explosions, constant blackouts… Once there was no electricity for 3 days in a row. The whole city was in darkness. We couldn’t shower, we couldn’t cook. However, we did not stop acting, introduced energy saving plans, helped to open unbreakable points to the local authorities. We helped to improve the situation as much as we could. However, as soon as the light appeared, the Russian military started shelling again and again. So we lived for almost four months.
Currently, the situation is improving. A rocket was shot down in the city a day ago, but we are already used to it… But sometimes… I hear the chords of a waltz… The same waltz that sounded on February 23… I At such moments, my body trembles…

Oleksii Igorovich Romanovskyi
Age: 15

Odesa Gymnasium #7, Teacher: Ms. Yulia Vakula

1st Place

As a child, I wondered: “How do I know when my childhood is over?” Well, on the 24 of February 2022, this was what I felt. The day before that, I was sitting in the kitchen with my mom, and I remember that moment so vividly, down to the low lights and the taste of tea. I talked about how depressed I felt lately and she said: “Give yourself some rest, and have a spa day tomorrow”. Of course, the spa day didn’t work out.
The next day merged into weeks and like many other people, I had the worst time of my life. I got severe anxiety and was always waiting for something negative to happen. I slept in the corridor and didn’t go outside often. My best friend and many others went abroad, so for months, I didn’t have anybody to talk to in real life. Don’t get me wrong, there are people who had it much worse. After the full-scale invasion, I realized how much everybody else suffers. One time, at a public speaking club, I had to talk about a sad moment in my life. I gave a speech about the war, and everyone who got this topic talked about it too. It breaks my heart how no matter who we were, everybody’s lives got destroyed throughout this year. We cannot just forget this, or let it be. As a person who creates art, I could never “leave the war out of it”. There is a poem by Marwan Makhoul that depicts what I mean perfectly: “In order for me to write poetry that isn’t political, I must listen to the birds And in order to hear the birds the warplanes must be silent”. Moreover, because of the war, I realized that even when something seems like a tragedy, we get over it somehow. This realization helped me deal with stress so much. But It scares me how many things I don’t care about these days would have had the younger me terrified. I sometimes think, “Could I get used to anything?”. But I am sure that I would never do it willingly because I am sick of getting used to things.
Even though the past year might have positively changed me and made me strong, I could never say I’m thankful for such a thing. But the advice I would give to people, no matter if they witnessed war: We do not realize how valuable something is until we lose it. Specifically time, you cannot get it back once you have spent it. So live your life so that you have no regrets. When you know you cannot change something, let it be, and don’t destroy yourself mentally about it. Furthermore, we should never promise ourselves to do something “in the next life”. We do not understand how lucky we are if we have both a dream, and an opportunity to fulfill it.

Dariia Chumakova
Age: 15

Municipal Collegium, Kropyvnytskyi, Teacher: Ms. Lyudmyla Chernobryvets