KOHLER—Kateryna Chaplygina desperately misses her home of Kharkiv, Ukraine. But she’s grateful for the second home and welcoming community she’s found in Haldimand.
After Ukraine was invaded, Chaplygina fled her home country with her son, David Mamedov, now 9. The two lived in Poland for a bit before going to Italy, where they lived for two years before heading to Canada. They arrived in March 2024.
“At the airport we found support from our Ukrainian volunteers and we were accommodated in a hotel for two weeks,” Chaplygina said in an interview with The Press using a translation app. She reached out on social media for help, and found it with Yee Ling Wong and Rodger Cocking, who welcomed the mother and son into their Kohler-area home. Chaplygina said she was very grateful to them for their help.
Besides helping her enroll her son in school, they also connected her with Shelly Wilkins, owner of Shelly’s Family Dining, for employment.
Wilkins said Chaplygina has been a welcome addition to the team. “It’s a learning experience for both of us; she teaches us, we teach her,” Wilkins said, adding that Chaplygina is “a very kind-hearted person, willing to step in any time.… She’s hard working; a real asset.”
Chaplygina has been bringing some of the dishes from her home country to Canada, including borscht and Napoleon cake, the latter of which, in a strange turn of events, connected her with a group of motorcycle enthusiasts who have taken her and her son under their wings.
Jan Goble, who is a member of the Blue Knights International Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club Inc., Blue Knights Ontario VI chapter, with her husband Paul Kranjc, explained that in May the club had their annual spring gathering at Wilkins’ restaurant, as per usual.
During the event, they had Chaplygina’s cake, which lead to Wilkins telling the members a bit about her story and introducing her to them.
Goble said the group immediately pulled together a few items – clothing and other essentials – to help the family. This is nothing new for the club.
“They’re a tough-looking crew sometimes, but they do good things,” Goble said, noting that the local chapter has helped raise money for a number of causes, including Crime Stoppers and prostate cancer. This is on top of the day-to-day support they show in their community.
“We promote safe riding,” Goble noted. “If someone is pulled over, we’ll stop and help them out.”
Sid Millin, club president of the local chapter, explained that the group is open to “anyone who has (or had, before retirement) the authority of arrest.”
This can include customs agents, police, correctional officers, judges, etc. While that’s part of membership, “Motorcycling is what brings us together,” he said.
Goble added, “Some of the guys rode motorcycles when they were part of the police.”
The chapter is always looking for members; those who are interested can contact Millin at 905-979-7995 for more information.
Besides the initial help the group offered Chaplygina and her son, the members also spent some time gathering more items – more clothing, as well as toys, sports equipment, and even a bike and helmet for Mamedov – as well as cash for the family, which they presented to them on July 12.
Millin gave special credit to John and Marina Mahiques, who were unable to be there for the presentation, but who had been instrumental in gathering items.
Goble said in the end, “We want her to feel safe, that she’s making her way.… People have challenges, and if you can help lighten the load a bit, that’s what we’re here for.”
Chaplygina, when seeing all the gifts, told the club members, “This means a lot more to me than you might imagine, than you can think at all.”
She also told The Press that while she still misses her home in Ukraine, she loves living in Canada.
“I am safe with my child, this is primarily what interests me,” she said. “I am very glad that I am under a peaceful sky.”
