Mariupol Before and After: Our Family’s Story will be presented from 6-7:30 pm Thursday, June 13, at the Global Village Museum of Arts and Cultures by Stephen Connacher, a former resident of the city who now lives in Fort Collins.

“As a local resident of Mariupol from 2016-2021, I witnessed the port city undergo a wondrous transformation and become a vibrant European city,” said Connacher. “But in early 2022, Russia massacred Mariupol, turning the city into an international symbol of death and destruction. My mother, Ludmila, endured 73 days of attack, siege, occupation, and filtration before a miraculous escape and journey to Fort Collins. I will tell her personal story of survival through those unimaginable 10 weeks, complete with extensive footage.”

Svitlana Horyelova, who also fled from the war in Ukraine, will complete the presentation. Horyelova is now a Lead Case Coach for Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains, and she will outline the situation facing Ukrainians in the Northern Colorado area. Lutheran Family Services is a faith-based, non-profit human services agency providing adoption, disaster relief, foster care, older adult guardianship, family support and education, and refugee and immigration services since 1948.

Admission to the program is $5 per person, and reservations are required at globalvillagemuseum.org. Refreshments will be served, and program registration includes admission to the Museum’s four galleries.

The Global Village Museum is located at 200 West Mountain Avenue, and Museum hours are 11 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Saturday. Regular admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and students, $1 for ages 4-15, and free for children three and under. Adult tours receive discounted admission of $3/person. For more information, please visit globalvillagemuseum.org or call 970-221-4600.