Tetiana Torbina, 64, was reunited with daughter Mariia Torbina and son-in-law Alex Will on April 8. Photo / Supplied
Tetiana Torbina, 64, was reunited with daughter Mariia Torbina and son-in-law Alex Will on April 8. Photo / Supplied
A Northland man has bid goodbye to his "most prized possession" - a red vintage campervan he's had for more than 22 years.
But the farewell was more than worth it for Alex Wills as a month-long journey – started in war-torn Ukraine – finally ended for his mother-in-law, Tetiana Torbina.
Torbina has made it safely to New Zealand where Wills has sacrificed his campervan in an effort to build his mother-in-law a home in Northland.
The 64-year-old Ukrainian stuffed a lifetime of belongings into a single backpack and boarded a train without a known destination in a bid to flee from Ukraine on March 7.
Fortunately, it took her to Slovakia where she lived with a "lovely family" for about a month.
On April 8, Auckland International Airport was the scene of a much-anticipated family reunion between Torbina, her daughter Mariia, and Wills. Many "happy tears" flowed and "warm cuddles" were had among the trio.
Before the much sought-after reunion, Wills and their family had spent many sleepless nights trying to get Tetiana's visa approved by New Zealand Immigration.
"When she first went there [Slovakia], we did not even know if she'd be able to get an NZ visa under any category," he said.
Alex Wills has sold his 1977 Fiat 850 850T Amigo Camper to fund building materials for Tetiana Torbina's cabin on their property. Photo / Supplied
However, good news arrived on March 28 when Tetiana received her visa under the special Ukrainian visa condition. She was able to travel to New Zealand and stay for at least two years.
Wills immediately began the building works on a place for her to call home.
He said part of that was saying goodbye to his Fiat 850T Amigo Camper to help fund building materials.
"I had the campervan since I was 20 and I was only the second owner," Wills said.
"We don't have a space in the shed, and with mama coming over it just made sense to sell it and build a small house for her."
Since setting foot in New Zealand, Tetiana Torbina has been living with Wills' mum, Heather Wills, in the Bay of Plenty.
Wills said she had settled in well and had jumped into the Kiwi way of life.
"We took her out fishing in Tauranga and she caught four fish for dinner. She was really excited about that."
Tetiana's stay in the Bay had helped to keep her mind off the atrocities still unfolding in Ukraine.
Tetiana Torbina and Heather Wills are busy knitting a wool blanket and keeping each other company in Katikati, near Tauranga. Photo / Supplied
"Things are getting more worrisome for us, as we still have family in Ukraine," Wills said.
"Their city is in the centre and next on the target list, with troops lining up to do something in the city anytime now."
Russian occupation forces were reported to have fired artillery from the temporarily occupied territory of the Kherson region on towns and villages - only 50km away from the city of Kryvyi Rih, Tetiana's hometown.
