A Canadian in Russia struggling to bring his family home

A former northern Ontario resident, Daniel de Chevigny, now calls Tyumen, Russia home and is trying to return to Canada with his wife and children amidst the Russian attacks on Ukraine.

"Back in 2001, I went to work at a summer camp in the U.S. and I met Evgenya there. 18 years later, we got married and decided because she had two kids here, we didn’t want to take them away from their father and grandparents. I’ve been travelling back and forth between Russia and Canada since May 2019," de Chevigny, who is originally from Elliot Lake, Ont., told CTV News in a video interview.

Right now, he’s trying to get back to Canada as soon as possible with his wife, two-year-old son Adrian, and two step-children Kira (6) and Pavel (11).

"The biggest issue for us is that 90 per cent of my income is gone due to the sanctions. Everything’s just been cut off and I can’t get any money that I have there, so I have to shut down the business that I have here," he said.

"I run an English school and I just can’t pay the rent, so it’s closed down which will then factor into losing that other 10 per cent of income that I do have unless I can do some private lessons."

He said he has tried to reach out to several levels of government including MPs, MPPs, even the prime minister’s office, but feels it’s just falling on deaf ears. The only person he said who has been helpful is Nickel Belt MP Marc Serré.

"We’re not getting much support from the federal government, and we are basically falling through the cracks in regards to assistance. We’ve got applications in for the visas for Kira, Pavel, and Evgenya but I can’t get Adrian a passport because the embassy is not returning my calls," said de Chevigny.

"Finally Thursday, global affairs sent them a message on my behalf so hopefully, that will help,"

He said anyone who is in Ukraine is able to get a visa to go to Canada for two years, but said his family is unable to get that same support.

"I was told at the application center Wednesday they’re not going to move forward on that because it’s not a priority. They want to deal with Ukrainian people first, which I can understand. They’re definitely in (more) immediate danger than I am, and I’ve got a couple of months where I can stay afloat, but I want to get ahead of things."

He does have some concerns when it comes to safety, but overall, his family is doing well right now.

"Have I been threatened? No. Am I near the actual combat? No. It’s about a 36-hour drive away, so the major concern is just making sure the bills are paid, our power isn’t cut off, and we have enough food. And we’ve taken some steps to mitigate that," said de Chevigny

Selling off as much as he can including properties he owned for his school, he’s also started a Go Fund Me campaign for his family to help with the costs associated with the move.