President Biden's State of the Union address tonight comes as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine. 27-year-old Yanina Nickless of Kennebunkport, who will be a virtual guest of Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree for the televised speech, has been closely watching news coverage of the invasion. Her family lives in a small village, near Ukraine's Kherson region.
Nickless came to Maine in 2015, went to school at the University of Southern Maine, and then settled here. Since the current conflict began, Nickless said she often finds herself waking up at around 2 a.m. to check the latest news. Then she texts her family back home at 5 a.m., just to make sure they're safe.
"I try to call. If they don't answer, I send a text. Then they send a text back. My mom says don't worry. She sends smiley faces, whatever she can, just little messages. They're still there," Nickless said.
Nickless said when she does check-in, its hard to wait for the response.
"The best I can do is stay strong for them. But it's really hard sometimes. Especially when you send a message to your parents, and you don't hear a reply for what seems, it might be a minute. But it seems like hours," she said.
So far, Nickless said, her family is getting through. Their village has a wine factory with a bomb shelter stocked with clothes, blankets and food. Her family has its own food cellar, too. Nickless said she offered to help find her family a safe place to stay in Europe, but they turned her down.
"It's their home, just like my home, it's their home. And they said they're not going to leave. They're going to stay until the end. Whatever the end will be," she said.
Nickless said she's been thankful for the United States' leadership, and she feels hopeful when seeing how so many countries have rallied behind her people and imposed crippling economic sanctions on Russia.
She acknowledged that the military situation is complicated, but she said she would like to see more countries help to protect Ukraine's skies with a no-fly zone.
"I'm very proud of Ukrainians. It's absolutely crazy what they are doing. It's day six, and they're still standing strong. There are many cities, and Russia didn't go far. But somebody has to help us to protect the skies. And that's my hope."
Rep. Chellie Pingree, who invited Nickless as her guest for the State of the Union address, said she hopes that Nickless' story will resonate with people across Maine, and bring home the importance of supporting Ukraine.
"And how she's hopeful that someday she can go back to Ukraine, and it can be a free country, I think reminds all of us that this is a really important struggle. It engages people that we know and that we connect to. And that's why it's so important that we play a role in protecting Ukraine, and preserving democracy around the world," Pingree said.
You can hear President Biden's State of the Union address on Maine Public Radio and at mainepublic.org beginning at 9 p.m. You can also watch it on Maine Public Television, with coverage beginning at 8 p.m.
