One year ago, as bombs started falling in Ukraine, Lika Zazgharska’s family knew they would have to leave their homeland. Where they would end up wasn’t certain, but after a stay in Cyprus, Lika and her parents moved to Rancho Cucamonga, where her sister and brother-in-law had been living.
Nearly six months later, Lika, 16, is immersed in a new school (Rancho Cucamonga High School) as she looks to a future as uncertain as her recent past.
“I’m counting everything as an experience,” Lika says. “My parents lost everything, and we don’t know how long the war will last. Ukraine will always be my home. Until then, I really like it here and appreciate how everyone has been.”
Lika’s transition to an entirely different world has been a remarkable one. Despite having to make up classes, such as American history, that weren’t available in Ukraine, she is on track to graduate in May 2024. She is learning about American sports and describes Rancho’s state-of-the-art football stadium as her favorite spot on campus.
Language hasn’t been much of a barrier, due to Ukraine’s insistence that children learn English and Russian, in addition to their native language. She also comes from a rigorous education system, with heavy homework assignments and strictly structured course loads.
Says her counselor, Concetta Aguilera, “Lika’s story is an inspiring one. It’s amazing what she has accomplished here, especially when you think of everything she has seen and experienced.”
Those experiences include hearing bombs nearby during the early days of the war. She and her family lived in Kyiv, the capital, and the destruction, she says, was far more devastating than anything that has been shown on TV.
Panic would set in, and “you were always scared to die,” Lika says. “You get angry too. Why are they (Russia) trying to kill us? Why should I have to move from my country?”
She is proud of the resolve of the Ukraine people and the country’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky: “He is saving our country. He didn’t betray us.”
Dr. Mathew Holton, Superintendent of the Chaffey Joint Union High School District and a former Rancho Cucamonga High School Principal, says he hopes that Lika’s experience at RCHS has been helpful as she processes the events of the past 12 months. “We are so honored to be able to welcome her and her family to our community and our school,” he says. “We have as much to learn from her as she is learning from us.”
Lika appreciates the support and cites the region’s multiculturalism as something she has enjoyed. She loves math, but looking ahead, she is leaving her possibilities open. Psychology and medicine interest her as possible career choices.
She’s not only open to new experiences, she revels in them.
“It’s really a cool way to see this life,” she says.