When Nadia Tikhonova awoke to the sounds of explosion outside her apartment in Ukraine and an announcement from the president that war with Russia had begun, she struggled to believe it.

The day war broke out, thousands of women in Ukraine took on the strength and resilience their family needed to survive, undergoing a transformation from immense pain to the purpose of protecting her loved ones and ensuring their future safety.

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On Thursday 25 November, women gathered at St Andrews Church in Whissendine for a Rutland Women in Leadership meeting with a talk entitled 'The Power of Women: Transformation amidst War.'

Organised by Fiona Wilson (of Fiona Wilson Coaching), the evening bought together women from across Rutland to hear the stories of four incredible women and their journey from Ukraine to Rutland.

Nadia Tikhonova and her 14-year-old daughter Nika told the captivated audience about how the outbreak of war changed their lives and has led them to find new strength, purpose and community alongside other women in Rutland.

Before 2022, Nadia described her life as 'perfectly ordinary,' living in Irpin, Ukraine with her husband, two children aged seven and ten and dog Rocky.

Nadia and her husband had decided to leave their office jobs to create a business organising and running children's football clubs, called Club Leo, with an international tournament that bought together over 180 football teams from across Europe.

'Life wasn't perfect, but it was good, stable and full of plans,' said Nadia.

Nadia told the story of how fled the war in Ukraine and found a new community in Oakham (Photo: Grace Kennington)

However, she vividly recalls being woken up on the morning of 24 February 2022 to the sound of explosions, seeing smoke rising from the nearby Hostomel airport, just 15 minutes from their apartment.

President Zelensky spoke on television, telling Ukrainians the unimaginable – that their country was at war.

Upon hearing the news, Nadia struggled to accept what was happening, keeping to simple daily routines such as walking the dog, and cooking as long as it was possible to do hoping it would soon be over. By that evening though, it became clear that it wasn't going to be over in a few hours.

Later that day her family sat in the basement of their twelve-storey apartment building, with neighbours they had only spoken to in passing, trying to work out how to survive.

Nearby, the Irpin bridge, which was just 300 metres from their home and connected Irpin to the city of Kyiv, was blown up to protect the city, and with it their symbol of hope and evacuation was also destroyed.

With Russians on one side and Kyiv on the other and no safe way out, Nadia recalled feeling trapped and that feeling giving way to a first major transformation she underwent.

She described it as she went from 'being the subject of my own life to becoming the object of someone else plan.

'In that basement, surrounded by neighbours and children, I realised how fast ordinary people – especially women – change when they must: from mothers into protectors, from organisers of birthdays into organisers of survival.

'I must this honestly,' she recalled, 'if not for our neighbours urging us: "Leave now. Take the children and go. We won't go without you," we might not have made it out in time.

'Sometimes your survival depends on the courage of someone who simply speaks up.'

Reflecting on it now, Nadia can recognise that it was complete strangers who saved her and her family. People she had never spoken to in person, scattered across the world bought together by following the family dog Rocky's Instagram page, were the reason her and her children managed to flee to safety.

'It was community – strangers and neighbours together – that pushed us forward,' said Nadia.

Nadia's story, however, is not unique.

Since February 2022, over 70,000 Ukrainian women have joined the army, serving as medics, intelligence officers, and soldiers, taking the threat to their country into their own hands and laying down their lives for a better future.

For other women, the fight has been within, undergoing pain, trauma and total relocation to protect loved ones, finding the strength and resilience to start life completely from scratch if it means they can find safety.

Nadia's family has built a new life in Oakham.

Nadia and Nika took part in a fundraiser to send ambulances full of medical supplies and mobility aids to Ukraine (Photo: URICR)

They found a community through Rocky the Norwich Instagram of friends across Europe willing to open their homes to help the family have safe passage to the UK. They drove from Ukraine to Oakham where they moved in with a local family and found safety and support.

Looking back on their arrival in Oakham, Nadia said: 'When we arrived, we had nothing but we were welcomed.

'The kindness of others transformed me: from refugee to a community member and a community leader.'

Nadia is now the co-chair of the Ukrainian Rotary Impact Club of Rutland (Photo: URICR)

Even with all the warmth and support in Rutland, it was still hard for people to fully grasp the reality of what families like Nadia's had experienced.

Nadia and Nika put together a moving video about their life before the war and after it broke out, to spread better understanding of the difficulties Ukrainians had faced.

The video was shown at Nika's school and was shown to the women at the Rutland Women in Leadership meeting.

The raw emotion of the video and honesty from a child about the difficulty they had faced was hard-hitting for those who watched it but we have decided to share the video with our Nub News readers as it is an important demonstration of the hardship these women have faced.

Nadia now works closely with 15 colleagues and friends that were displaced from across Ukraine as co-chair of the Ukrainian Rotary Impact Club of Rutland.

This new wing of the Rotary Club of Rutland supports Ukrainian humanitarian causes, as well as forging strong ties to the local community in Rutland by giving back and supporting causes in the area.

Nadia's spirit and passion for giving is infectious, having dedicated so much time and energy to spreading kindness and compassion.

The Ukrainian Rotary Impact Club raised funds for aid for Ukraine as well as local causes in Rutland (Photo: URICR)

In August this year, seven members of the URICR underwent a daring 418ft abseil, raising over £1,5000 to send wheelchairs, mobility aids and medical equipment to Ukraine.

So far, the group has sent 8 ambulances back to Ukraine, filled with essential medical equipment.

They have also held charity concerts and spent a lot of time working with the Rotary Club of Rutland to support local causes.

The four women were presented with blue and yellow flowers by Fiona after their speech (Photo: Grace Kennington)

Nadia and Nika were joined at the meeting by Tetiana Volyk and Tetiana Zubatova, who are also members of the URICR.

The two Tetianas have founded Dreams Come True Catering since arriving in Rutland, providing food for the Rutland Women in Leadership meetings, supporting charity bake sales, and catering local events.

Upon arriving in the UK, Tetiana Volyk was diagnosed with Stage Four breast cancer and has since made a full recovery.

Nadia, Nika and both Tetianas are all exceptional examples of women who have faced extreme adversity and found strength, resilience and community through their own pain and loss.

Nadia said an important thank you to Fiona Wilson and Rutland Women in Leadership for giving them the platform to share their story of transformation with other women.

Attendees of the Rutland Women in Leadership meeting (Photo: Carina Hoskisson)

To find out more about what the Ukrainian Rotary Impact Club of Rutland have planned for 2026, you can visit their website or Facebook page.

To find out more or attend future Rutland Women in Leadership Meetings, get in touch with Fiona Wilson on www.fionawilsoncoaching.com.