Greenwich Looks To Establish Sister City Relationship In Ukraine

GREENWICH, CT — Over the past year, there's been a lot darkness and despair as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But the town of Greenwich is looking to step up and provide a little light and hope for years to come.

Greenwich is seeking to establish a sister city relationship with the city of Izyum in Northeastern Ukraine. Greenwich already has sister cities in China (Hangzhou) and Italy (Rose and Morra De Sanctis).

The idea came about when Greenwich resident and former Miss Connecticut USA 2017, Olga Litvinenko, recently visited Ukraine. Litvinenko was born in Kyiv and raised in Greenwich.

While visiting, she found out about Westport's sister city relationship and fundraising efforts with the city of Lyman.

"I took a trip to Lyman and met with the chief of police there, and I saw the strong impact that doing a sister city effort can make for these places that have been severely devastated in Ukraine," Litvinenko told Patch. "Through the fundraising efforts in Westport, they've been able to start repairing homes. They've purchased communal objects like garbage trucks… Something like picking up trash and being able to do that now on a daily basis really helps in the cleanup and getting the community back into the town so they can start trying to live somewhat of a life they used to have."

Litvinenko thought Greenwich could follow suit.

"Being raised in Greenwich, I thought to myself, 'Why not the town of Greenwich?' Our town is so supportive of one another, and we're always looking to help," she said.

Litvinenko began talking with First Selectman Fred Camillo, who plans on presenting the idea to the board of selectmen. He's also hoping to have a Zoom call with Izyum Mayor Valerii Marchenko in the near future.

"It's symbolic in a sense that it shows our support and solidarity with Ukraine and this particular city," Camillo said. "There may be something where we can have some representatives from Greenwich go over there and have some people from that town visit our town. I think there's a lot of upside to this. Right now, the main thing is to show that support."

Litvinenko said Izyum was chosen because it's similar in size and geography to Greenwich. It's also been devastated by the war, as it was once occupied by Russian forces for months before Ukraine regained control last September.

By having a sister city relationship, Greenwich and Izyum will be forever linked, Litvinenko said. A fundraising event is being planned in Greenwich to benefit the city and perhaps even other areas that need help.

"The efforts that our town puts together to fundraise and to gather goods for the city of Izyum will be similar to what our neighbors would do for our own town," Litvinenko added. "With this sister city effort and the fundraiser we do, we'll be able to really impact a lot of lives and people, and come together and have a presence in a place that sometimes feels so dim, and through this effort we'll be able to give them light and hope and a positive outlook on life."

After the war began over a year ago, Litvinenko and Dr. Inna Lazar, a Greenwich resident who is also from Ukraine, started USA For Ukraine, which is dedicated to providing direct aid for those affected by the war, and directing people to the appropriate channels of charity.

The support over the last year has meant a lot to Litvinenko.

"Seeing that the community helps and is helping here in my very backyard to my extended family members, friends and acquaintances in Ukraine, it really just showcases how much we are one," Litvinenko said. "We're all in this together, that we stand up to bullies and we want to make this situation peaceful and we want to make the world a better place."

She hopes that support will continue through the sister city relationship.