Weston, Connecticut has joined the humanitarian effort to aid Ukrainian citizens in partnership with Ukraine Aid International, Inc, adopting its sister city, of Siversk. “This is more than a gesture. It comes from the very heart of what Weston is all about, a spirit of generosity, an awareness that regardless of distance we are connected to those whose circumstances are very, very different from ours, ” said Samantha Nestor, Weston First Selectwoman.

Siversk is a small city in the Bakhmut region of Ukraine, located 62 miles north of Donetsk. The city was founded in 1784 as a mining town and named after the nearby River Siverskyi. Much like Weston, prior to the war, Siversk was a family friendly town, with a little more than 10,000 residents in a bucolic setting.

In July 2022, the city became the site of a battle between forces from Russia and the breakaway DPR and LPR against Ukrainian forces. Due to the 2022 Kharkiv counteroffensive, Russian forces were unable to make further gains in the city and withdrew from Siversk on September 8, 2022.

Despite this victory, Siversk remains close to the front line and the war has left a devastating impact on the town. For the last two years, Siversk, has not had any gas or electricity. Internet and cell phone connectivity is limited. Flattened by shelling, only one of their three schools remain and the college where students learned farming and how to operate agricultural machinery was destroyed.

“A little piece of American heart will make the Ukrainian heart even bigger than it is now” said the Mayor of Siversk, Alexey Vorobiev.

Because of Mayor Vorobiev’s heroic efforts, there are virtually no children left in Siversk. He brought close to 100 children to the Karpathian mountains for safe refuge and is looking to bring the children to Romania, as well as to the United States.

Despite adversity, Mayor Vorobiev continues to ensure that the basic needs of the remaining population are met. Vorobiev arranges for food to be delivered to citizens weekly and ensure that hygiene products are delivered each month. Additionally, the government provided generators for each household and continues to pay monthly salaries to communal workers.