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episodes
Weekly audio portraits from Ukraine
New episodes will air on WRHU 88.7 FM and can be streamed anytime on this website.
listen to the origin episode
00:00 / 22:29
In this emotional interview, You Can't Take The Sky host Doualy Xaykaothao tells producer and reporter Camryn Bowden about her first time in Ukraine, arriving there in April 2022 and her many visits after.
angelina k.
published tuesday 12 may
Angelina is from a Ukrainian village not far from Belarus, where Russian troops first began their attacks in what would eventually be known locally as the "big" war – the full-scale conflict that began 24 February 2022. She and her family heard the sounds of war long before others understood their new reality. In this episode, Angelina talks about life as a young adult in Ukraine and the hopes she has for herself and her motherland.
Listen here
00:00 / 24:20
volodymyr and
natalya z.
delayed due to fresh russian strikes
Volodymyr and his wife Natalya are educators at a beloved school in Hostomel. He's the principal; she's the math teacher. Immediately after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, their school was attacked by Russian troops, then occupied for a month. Armed soldiers held dozens of Ukrainian teachers and children captive in the school's basement for weeks. After the troops left, much of the school required reconstruction to welcome back hundreds of students. In this episode, they talk about rebuilding their school, a peach tree and why they go to art exhibits.
New Episodes Each Week
serhii b.
coming soon
Police Colonel Serhii B. leads the Investigative Department of the Kharkiv Regional Police. He investigates war crimes and domestic crimes, which have not stopped since the beginning of the war. We met him just days after the Russian attack of a Kharkiv hardware shopping center that killed nearly 20 people, including a 12-year-old girl. In this episode, Serhii talks about the challenges and the importance of his ongoing work. He also shares why the city of Kharkiv is so special to so many Ukrainians, including him and his family.
New Episodes Each Week
tetiana s.
coming soon
Tetiana is a humanitarian leader in Kyiv. She's been working on the front line since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Today, she runs a Kyiv-based non-profit called GoodWill Volunteers, serving older and disabled people. In this episode, she talks about near-death moments and why she won't leave Ukraine to work anywhere else.
New Episodes Each Week
ivan l.
coming soon
Ivan is a former Reuters war correspondent and cameraman who survived a Russian ballistic missile attack while in a Kramatorsk hotel in August 2024. His colleague and security advisor, Ryan Evans, a U.K. citizen, was killed. Ivan was in a coma for a month and has undergone extensive surgeries. In this episode, he explains that he's been given many opportunities to get medical treatment in other countries but he believes the only medicine and healing he needs is to be in Ukraine with his daughter and his people.
New Episodes Each Week
svitlana m.
coming soon
Svitlana is a cancer survivor and a Ukrainian volunteer medic who risks her life daily to get much-needed supplies to front-line brigades engaging with Russian troops. In this episode, she and a driver meet us at a safe location near the eastern front, hours away from fighting, to talk about a community of volunteers trying to support Ukrainian troops.
New Episodes Each Week
roksolana d.
coming soon
Roksolana is a mental health specialist who works at one of the first Ukrainian hospitals to treat soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. When the full-scale war started, she sent her husband out of the country with her children and stayed behind to help patients. In this episode, she talks about the general health of Ukrainian defenders and what the country will need once the war is over.
New Episodes Each Week
katerina a.
coming soon
Katerina is a Ukrainian actress best known for her performances with the Ivan Franko Theater in Kyiv. She delights in entertaining and sparking laughter among crowds, especially during wartime. In this episode, she shares a painful story of longing and still loving.
New Episodes Each Week
sofi l.
coming soon
Sofi is 15 and a champion in academics as well as belly dancing. Even during wartime, she's competing monthly at dance competitions in and around Lviv. She says she hopes to one day become a doctor and a professional dancer. In this episode, she talks about her school and not liking the spiders that seem to also seek refuge inside her neighborhood bomb shelter.
New Episodes Each Week
yulia v.
coming soon
Yulia helps to feed people across wartorn Ukraine and she mentors a young adult orphaned by the war. Yulia also teaches and writes. In this episode, she talks about being internally displaced from her hometown, which borders Russia, and the importance of self-love.
New Episodes Each Week
yurii k.
coming soon
Chef Yurii makes memorable food in Lviv and owns several restaurants and businesses. One of his most important relationships is with his brother, a defender on the front line. In this episode, he describes their special bond and talks about what it's like to cook during wartime.
New Episodes Each Week
evgenia i.
coming soon
Evgenia is a humanitarian and mother of a teenage son whose father was captured in 2022 in Azovstal, Mariupol City. She has been working on the front line to train and educate medical staff and psychologists to better support Ukrainian defenders returning to villages and civilian life. In this episode, she talks about how Russian attacks only give her more power to help survivors.
New Episodes Each Week
galina z.
coming soon
Galina is a former business owner from Odesa. She loves to make healthy food and enjoys running even more. Her husband is a Ukrainian defender. In this episode, she talks about life near the Black Sea and the day she learned her father was found alive in a Russian prison.
New Episodes Each Week
zarina z.
coming soon
Zarina is an American filmmaker and author who lives in Ukraine. Her latest feature is called Kherson: Human Safari. In this episode, she discusses her complicated roots and why she lives in Kherson, a city that has been fitted with wires and netting to prevent Russia from killing civilians with Iranian-made drones.
New Episodes Each Week
roksik s.
coming soon
Rokskik is a force in Kharkiv. Not once since the start of Russia's full-scale war has she worn protective gear to transport food or deliver much-needed supplies to residents near the front line. She owns a catering company that feeds first responders immediately after attacks. In this episode, we visit her at work and at home to learn how she helps feed a city.
New Episodes Each Week
andrii z.
coming soon
Andrii is a game designer and engineer based in Kyiv. He says he is one of the lucky ones not drafted to the front line. In this episode, he talks about building a business in Ukraine's capital but also how he finds ways to support the defenders keeping watch while civilians sleep.
New Episodes Each Week
maria c.
coming soon
Long before war came to Ukraine, Maria knew she wanted to have many children. When the bombings started, she worked as a first responder to rescue children with special needs from the front line. Today, she's the legal guardian and parent to many children. In this episode, Maria elaborates on the challenges that come with raising a large family in wartime.
New Episodes Each Week
dayana k.
coming soon
Dayana is a singer and volunteer who has been training to support front-line defenders. We went to see a performance that she gave to children awaiting adoption. Her voice gave them warmth at a time when so many children have been forgotten. In this episode, she talks about her partner who is on the front line and about life in Ukraine's capital.
New Episodes Each Week
tanya k.
coming soon
Tanya is a Kyiv blogger and mother who was determined to have her baby in Ukraine's capital, even as Russian troops were marching on the country's capital in February 2022. Her baby girl is healthy and happy, growing fast. Tanya has become a bodybuilder, determined to stay strong in the face of Russia's unrelentless aggression. In this episode, she talks about why she chose to raise a child during wartime.
New Episodes Each Week
maria s.
coming soon
Maria is a Ukrainian college student who loves K-Pop. When we met her, she was in a bomb shelter awaiting air alarms for the all-clear. Despite the war, she has managed to travel to South Korea to fulfill some of her personal goals. In this episode, Maria talks about being a young artist in Kyiv.
New Episodes Each Week
oleksandr h.
coming soon
Oleksandr is a lira player and lover of Ukrainian folk music. He performs in many public spaces and at community events. He often plays traditional music in parks as a reminder of what they all are fighting for, attracting admirers young and old. In this episode, he talks about his love of the lira instrument and why it is important to keep playing music.
New Episodes Each Week
yuliia m.
coming soon
Yuliia survived several Russian attacks while working as a cook in Kharkiv. She has a fantastic laugh, an even bigger personality and a kitchen staff who are determined to keep feeding the local community. In this episode, Yuliia speaks of her heartaches and not-so-fun times at nail salons.
New Episodes Each Week
lizaveta l. and diana r.
coming soon
On a very loud moving train, Lizaveta and Diana approached our team during a meal break, curious about all our radio gear. They told us about the work they are doing globally to tell the world about life in Ukraine. In this episode, they talk about traveling to other parts of Europe to help improve the lives of young people in Ukraine.
New Episodes Each Week
amina m.
coming soon
Amina is from Melitopol in southern Ukraine, where her family has been living under Russian occupation since March 2022. We have edited the interview so that her immediate relatives are not identifiable. In this episode, she talks about why she left her parents and what she wants the world to understand about war.
New Episodes Each Week
olya v.
coming soon
Olya loves anime, her family, her church and her country. One of her hobbies is dancing freestyle at small venues in Lviv. In this episode, sitting in one of her favorite parks, Olya talks about being a working professional, supporting friends on the front line and God.
New Episodes Each Week
olena v.
coming soon
Like nail masters across Ukraine, Olena is booked out weeks in advance. She delights in helping people choose bright and bold colors for their fingernails. In this episode, she talks about why it is important that women continue having their nails done during wartime.
New Episodes Each Week
natalia k.
coming soon
Natalia is a co-founder of the Kharviv Media Hub. In this role, she helps local and international journalists tell intimate stories about wartime Ukraine. In this episode, she talks about the challenges of balancing the personal and the professional and offers Ukrainian wine recommendations.
New Episodes Each Week
maria b.
coming soon
Maria and her husband, Orest, are train conductors, crisscrossing the country on Ukrainian Railways. They talk about the first days of the war and how important trains are as Russia targets civilian train cars, and they reflect about their love story.
New Episodes Each Week
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