Reno Man Works With Polish Group to Evacuate Ukrainian Refugees

Buddy Haley recently returned to Reno after nearly three weeks in Europe. He had been working with the Copernicus Group to move Ukrainian refugees from their war-torn countries into Poland. Most of them were women and children.

"These mothers were giving their children to me, holding on to me," Haley said. "Some of them were so exhausted, they were just like wet noodles holding on to them because these mothers had to escape."

During his trip, he met a little girl named Sofi. She was one of many who left for Poland after saying goodbye to her father. He stayed behind to fight against the Russians.

"Sofi is this little girl that was unbelievable," Haley said. "She had to leave her father and there's pictures of her at the train station just hugging her father, goodbye. They don't know if they're going to see their husband and fathers again."

Haley was on one trip when he met another family. The youngest had undergone a kidney transplant.

"The daughter had a 44-year-old Belarussian man's kidney transplanted into her four-year-old little body," Haley said. "Her name is Nika. She was singing the entire way. Made our incredible journey very special and she's getting dialysis and doing well, now. Those are the kind of things that happen on a daily basis with these people."

Marcin and Dominika Sobiepanska founded The Copernicus Group, shortly after the war started. They have friends from Ukraine and some work for Marcin's company.

"We have never think if we should do it," Dominika Sobiepanska said. "We just did it. For us, it was really obvious that we have to do something for them. We have to help them with evacuations."

Sobiepanska says they rent buses and make one trip each day. They have room to evacuate 50 refugees per trip. They leave early in the morning and the trip can last until late in the evening. They also come with a level of risk.

"Lviv and the surroundings of Lviv were bombarded during night and our buses were on the roads," Sobiepanska said.

Once the evacuees reach Poland, The Copernicus Group provides accommodations including food, hygiene products and other basic essentials. It also arranges things like housing, employment, health care and education for things like Polish language lessons.

"People can learn Polish language and in this way, they are able to be more prepared to live in Poland," Sobiepanska said.

Sobiepanska says the grassroots organization has evacuated 2,500 refugees. That number rises every day. The war has taken a toll on the Ukrainians, so the group tries to make their move as accommodating as possible. They even set up fun events for the children and families to welcome them to Poland.

"They don't have any friends here and families here, so even strange people, unknown people and now they have to be their new families," Sobiepanska said.

Haley says the children have seen many horrible things during the short war. He expects them to be okay in the long run.

"They're going to be life-changers," Haley said. "They have seen things that no one should see but they're going to be a testimony to history."

Haley says another ugly side of the war is the number of people who are trying to use it for a profit. 

"They had to trust," Haley said. "There's war profiteering there right now that are charging refugees to get there. They're dropped off in the middle of nowhere. They have no idea where to go."

He says that is why small organizations like The Copernicus Group are so important because they have good intentions for the Ukrainians.

"They really find that they're in a place of safety and comfort," Haley said. "They don't know where they're going to go but they feel comfortable with this group."

Haley does not know if he will be able to return to Poland but he does intend to keep helping from Reno. His son, Graham is currently helping the effort in Poland with his girlfriend, Claire. They both recently graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno. They are working with Sobiepanska in any way they can.

"They spent the whole day shopping, segregation of those foods, preparing boxes for our families and delivering," Sobiepanska said.

Sobiepanska says the Ukrainian refugees are hoping that their time in Poland will be temporary and that they can return home after the war ends. Some have already made the decision to return home.

Haley says Marcin is a modern-day Oskar Schindler and Dominika is the new Mother Theresa. The Copernicus Group is named after a prestigious high school in Poland.

"They're a community of opera singers, doctors, professors, artists and so forth that have banded together in an unbelievable creative and community-driven way to act locally in Poland and to think, globally, to help their brothers and sisters out in Ukraine."

Haley says it costs $750-$1,000 per day to handle this mission. Sobiepanska says the group is in contact with many foundations throughout the United States and Europe who are helping with the group's mission.

To learn more about The Copernicus Group or to donate to its GoFundMe account, click here.