War in Ukraine: Local college student worries for country she once called home

CEDARVILLE — The city of Kyiv, Ukraine is known to many of us as the heart of the war in Ukraine.

For Cedarville University student Abigail Rist, it is home but she isn’t sure there will be much to go back to.

On the second day of the war, Ukrainians shot down a Russian aircraft, which hit the apartment building across from where Rist grew up.

Although Russian troops have moved away from the part of Kyiv where she grew up, Rist said they are still far too close to home.

She said she has to constantly just wait and pray, hoping that the next bombing won’t hit her friend’s home or a familiar place.

Rist is currently a junior at Cedarville, her family moved out of Ukraine a few years ago.

“It’s heart-wrenching, honestly ... there’s a huge part of you that is being destroyed and you can’t be there,” Rist told News Center 7′s Molly Koweek.

News Center 7 talked to Rist in February, but much has changed since then.

>> PREVIOUS REPORTING: Local college student shares concerns for friends, family in Ukraine amid possible invasion

In February, Rist said that people were still somewhat living a fairly normal life and not letting the threat of war stop them.

Now she said there isn’t a choice as people live between Air Raids.

“It’s awful,” Rist said.

>> Ukraine in Need: What you can do to help

Rist said the most difficult part is seeing her friends have to flee for their lives while she is safe in the U.S.

The United Nations has said that more than 4 million people have fled Ukraine.

But Rist said Ukrainians still have faith in their country and are proud.

“People are very set on ‘we will win, we will be victorious,” Rist said.

She said her faith has helped her get through this dark time.

“Reading my bible every morning and just waking up know that there is a good god, a god that is overall of this, even if we can’t understand why it’s happening,” she said.

©2022 Cox Media Group