Sue Christianson watched in shock and heartbreak as Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, and she wondered what she could do to help.
Christianson, of St. Paul, was looking for a way to donate money online when she came across a Forbes article that mentioned ENGin, a nonprofit organization that pairs Ukrainians with English-speaking volunteers for free online conversation practice.
She filled out an application in October 2022, and got an email back within a week. She attended an online training session and was asked to commit to one hour a week for conversation practice for at least three months.
Christianson, 56, was paired with Denys Piatnytskyi, a 28-year-old business analyst for a telecom company in Ukraine who now lives in Reisterstown, Md. She has been helping him practice his English via Zoom or Google Meet ever since.
More than 20,000 students in Ukraine have been served by ENGin, pronounced like “engine,” since it launched in 2020. English-speaking volunteers, who must be at least 14, are connected with young Ukrainians between the ages of 9 and 35.
No background in teaching English is required, but volunteers must have a basic knowledge of English “sufficient for minimal conversation and understanding your conversational partner,” according to ENGin’s website.
ENGin participants are matched based on preferences, interests and availability. After a match is made, ENGin supports the “buddies” – as the learners and volunteers are called – throughout their participation in the program with resources and lesson plans. A Twin Cities ENGin chapter recently formed, and volunteers are needed, Christianson said.
Learning conversational English is key to helping young Ukrainians find employment and navigate life in English-speaking countries, Piatnytskyi said.
“I really deeply started learning English in 2020 when the coronavirus started and nobody knows what will happen with your job, your position,” he said. “A lot of people started to go on the external markets, and we started to learn English deeper, but after the war started, and a lot of people emigrated, there was kind of a real need to know English to be able to communicate. It’s kind of a basic need.”
Tutor, student, friends
Christianson, a retired human-resources manager, said the teacher/tutor relationship has turned into a true friendship. “I think of Denys as family at this point,” she said. “The formal commitment of the program is for a year, but I’ll stick with him as long as he’ll put up with me.”
Said Piatnytskyi: “I appreciate her patience because at first when I came here, I wasn’t as talkative as now, and Sue was very patient to listen carefully, and she tried to do her best in understanding what I’m trying to say and all my explanations. I appreciate that.”
When the pair first started meeting via Zoom, Kyiv was still “being bombed really heavily,” Christianson said. “He was literally sitting in the dark because there was no power. He had to run his computer off of some sort of ancillary or remote power charger. We definitely got cut off at times.”
Piatnytskyi once went in to work to log on with Christianson because his place of employment still had power. “I was just like, ‘What are you doing?’” she said. “Because he had told me that they weren’t going to work at all because that area was being bombed so heavily. This was not worth it to me, just because you can get power there.”
Piatnytskyi rarely missed a session, even though he was living in the middle of a war zone, she said. “One time, he was helping his grandparents because their windows had been blown out from an aftershock,” she said. “It’s crazy how it barely fazes them. It’s just become part of their life. They just keep going on. My kids are around the same age, and I just can’t imagine them going through this.”
Piatnytskyi, who moved to Maryland in October to be with family, said his weekly video chats with Christianson were a lifesaver, especially during their first few months together.
“We had an agreement to have sessions on a regular basis,” he said. “It was in the evening, after my working hours, so it was not a problem. If you’re already able to work somehow and have electricity and internet connection, why should I postpone my meetings? It’s not a problem. They are kind of relaxing after a working day and after all this stuff going on, so I didn’t want to cancel them for that reason.”
No experience, solid progress
Christianson has no prior connection to Ukraine, “other than enjoying Kramarczuk’s,” she said, adding that she is “pretty much all Scandinavian.”
She does not have any prior experience in teaching English. “English and grammar were my absolute worst subjects in school,” she said. “I can do a spreadsheet, but I can’t write to save my soul. But I can talk!”
In fact, her pronunciation is excellent, a skill that Piatnytskyi has picked up after almost 18 months of tutoring sessions.
“It’s not because of me. It’s because of his hard work, for sure,” she said. “He constantly wants to learn new vocabulary.”
“I’ve attempted to learn other languages, but it’s really hard,” she said. “You have to be kind of brave to say them out loud. He’s able to find his words maybe a little bit quicker now, and I just think confidence is a big part. He had a great foundation.”
When praised for his English pronunciation, Piatnytskyi responded: “Thank you for this compliment. I’m not sure if it really is. I’m trying to do my best.”
Every once in a while, Piatnytskyi trips over an especially difficult word, such as entrepreneur. “I pronounced it like ‘interpreter,’ and it had some confusion,” he said. “Yes, some words you’re not using frequently, and you don’t know how to pronounce them and some fails happens.”
Christianson and Piatnytskyi said they used the provided ENGin lesson plans and materials for about six months, but then decided to branch out on their own. They often pick a topic they would like to discuss or choose an article to read and discuss.
“There is a lot of flexibility to meet your student where they’re at – what their interests are or your own interests,” she said. “It’s really about just giving them the opportunity to speak and to learn.”
Their Zoom and Google Meet sessions have covered a range of topics – from Piatnytskyi giving her a virtual tour of Kyiv, to his teaching her how to make wine through a detailed PowerPoint presentation, to his reviewing his top 100 movies.
“He even got me to watch a boxing match and actually made it interesting,” Christianson said. “We have met each other’s family through pictures and video greetings. We have definitely talked about the war when he wanted to, and I have learned so much about Ukrainian culture and history from him, which I knew nothing about prior to the war and becoming an ENGin volunteer. He’s really another member of my family at this point despite the fact we have never met in person.”
‘Wish I could do something’
In October 2023, Piatnytskyi and his girlfriend joined family members living in the Baltimore area through a program called “Uniting for Ukraine,” a federal government initiative launched in April 2022. The program allows Ukrainians who have been displaced by the war to seek refuge in the U.S. if they have a private sponsor willing to house and financially support them for two years.
Almost 6.5 million Ukrainians have fled the country or been displaced since Russia invaded in February 2022, according to the United Nations. Many of those people have found shelter in Europe, especially Poland, but more than 250,000 have come to the United States.
“I see that a disaster is happening, and I hope it will end by some kind of peace in Ukraine according to Ukrainian will and according to Ukrainian desires,” Piatnytskyi said. “A lot of people are dying there on the front line. A lot of people not on the front line are struggling, and a lot of people are dying, like, really every week, because of these hits because not every city is very well defended from the air.
“The only reason Ukraine is still standing is the bravery of Ukrainian soldiers and the support of Western countries. Thank you for that. As for now, the situation is pretty bad, but I hope for a better future.”
Christianson, who is married and has two children, said she hopes she inspires others to volunteer with ENGin. She recently signed up to take on a second student.
“All the times you see something going on, like the war in Ukraine, what’s going on in Israel and Gaza right now, what went on in Afghanistan, and you sit here, and you feel so helpless,” she said. “You just think, ‘God, I wish I could do something.’ This is something so simple. It’s an hour commitment a week, and everything is there for you. And you know, you have this opportunity to just support and interact directly with somebody who is living in a war zone. I would say I’ve gotten as much – or more – from it than he has.”
English language tutors for Ukrainians
ENGin, pronounced like “engine,” launched in 2020 to match English-speaking volunteers with young Ukrainians between the ages of 9 and 35.
To learn more or volunteer, go to www.enginprogram.org.
