OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Orel Alliance will host a grand opening for its new Ukrainian Community Center this Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Bel Air Plaza, located off 120th and West Center Road.
- Amanda Hall, the executive director of Orel Alliance, started the organization in April 2024 in response to the war in Ukraine.
- The nonprofit helps Ukrainians who found their way to Omaha get the assistance they need to thrive, meeting a range of needs from finding jobs to education, housing, and healthcare.
- "The more we got to know our community, the more it became clear that we needed some space so that these folks can keep their Ukrainian roots and keep their culture alive," Hall said.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
More than four years since Russia’s war on Ukraine began, a nonprofit helping refugees in Omaha rebuild their lives is celebrating a big achievement with the opening of a Ukrainian Community Center.
Orel Alliance will host a grand opening for the new center this Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Bel Air Plaza, located off 120th and West Center Road.
"We just wanted some place that felt like a home more than an office for our folks," Amanda Hall said.
Hall, the executive director of Orel Alliance, started the organization in April 2024 in response to the devastation overseas. Her involvement began with a personal connection after buying treats from a Ukrainian baker in town.
The nonprofit helps Ukrainians who found their way to Omaha get the assistance they need to thrive, meeting a range of needs from finding jobs to education, housing, and healthcare. Orel, which means eagle in Ukrainian, symbolizes the strength and resilience of its people.
Lesia Mikhalets is one of the refugees who received help and now works as the community liaison for the nonprofit.
"I choose U.S. I feel here more comfortable and safety," Lesia Mikhalets said.
Adjusting to life in America was not easy when she first arrived.
"I take classes at MCC College because I never speak English," Mikhalets said.
As the organization grew, Hall realized something was missing.
"The more we got to know our community, the more it became clear that we needed some space so that these folks can keep their Ukrainian roots and keep their culture alive," Hall said.
In March, they found the space in the Bel Air Plaza. It did not take long before the community volunteered their time to transform it.
"We had a baby shower for one of the gals in our community, board meetings. We've done some language lessons, some individual meetings with folks," Hall said.
For Ukrainians like Mikhalets, the center is about more than just programs.
"We create history because in Omaha and Nebraska we never have like this place. We never have Ukrainian community center. We now we can develop our culture, our history. Support each other is meaning for us a lot," Mikhalets said.
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