URGENT: Local Ukranian family at risk!

We have started this campaign to raise funds for our friends and neighbors, a family of refugees from Ukraine. They came to America legally and have been working here and getting settled and established. But now it looks like Ukrainian refugees will be sent out of the country. They can't go home -- their town is gone. They're raising money to cover the cost of resettling somewhere new if need be -- as well as for legal costs, as they fight to remain in America. Here's their story:

We are a family from Ukraine. My name is Natalia, my husband is Artem and our son is Ruslan. We came to the States two years ago, after the war started. In Ukraine we had our own life, our own house, but since the beginning of the full-scale war our hometown of Bakhmut (Donetsk region) was completely destroyed and occupied by Russia. So we had to seek refuge in another country. It was unbearable to be constantly under shelling, living in a basement and trying to study at school between the sounds of sirens. We fled to the Czech Republic, then to America.

In the States we had to start life from scratch. It was very hard, but we've started to make it. During this time, we met new acquaintances and friends who helped us with ordinary but important things, such as getting dental care and finding inexpensive places to shop, such as thrift stores and international groceries. Our son finished elementary school and is already in 6th grade. We are very proud of Ruslan. In spite of all the horrors we had to go through, he studies well and gets the highest grade in all subjects. The school administration even offered him to participate in the gifted and talented contest. This is a huge achievement, considering that English is a foreign language for him.

Upon arriving in the States, we started working on completely different jobs that didn't match our equipment and experience, but it didn't matter. The important thing was to get a job and have a livelihood. (I used to be a flight attendant and Artem was a stone engraver.)

I went to work delivering packages for Amazon as soon as I learned to drive and got my license (without driving experience in Ukraine). Artem got a job at our local supermarket, King Soopers, even without knowing English. (I do know some English.)

Artem has been fighting cancer since 2014 and we were lucky that he was able to have surgery in the Czech Republic. He is now in recovery and rehabilitation.

About a year ago, we both started working cleaning houses. This way we were able to build our own schedule so we could combine it with personal matters and school. When you are an immigrant in a foreign country, the most common and simple things for citizens can take a lot more time and effort.

All in all, we tried to establish our everyday life and routine as best we could.

But in November, after the presidential election in America, our precarious position was shaken even more...

Due to President Trump's new anti-immigrant policies, we have been frozen from receiving new documents. We have the right to renew our status, but in fact our applications are all "on pause." And documents are very important to us! Our health insurance has already been canceled, and without documents and work permits, we cannot legally work and be safe. We are afraid every time we go out on the street that we might be detained and deported. And where should we go back to if the country is at war, our hometown is destroyed and occupied?

We went to a consultation with an immigration lawyer and were told that the only option is a work visa or asylum. We have no chance to get a work visa, because no one will sponsor us without documents and a work permit. So the only possible option is asylum. But the services of a lawyer for us is not feasible, as it will cost more than $20,000.

What to do, we do not know. Our only hope is for people who will not be indifferent to our situation.