Welcoming refugees, strengthening community: Tacoma Slavic Association’s vital role

In just two years, the Tacoma Slavic Association (TSA) has supported more than 2,300 immigrants from Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Belarus, and other Slavic nations as they build new lives in the United States.

The help TSA provides to Slavic refugees ranges from emergency boxes that offer familiar food items from their home countries to assistance navigating the complicated U.S. health care system. Weekly workshops on practical topics explain life skills like buying auto insurance, mastering English, finding a job, enrolling in community college, and operating a small business. TSA’s goal is to aid newcomers on their journey toward self-sufficiency.

Olga Piddubna (pictured above) is the executive director of TSA and oversees the organization’s workforce. She understands the hard work immigrants must undertake to establish themselves in the United States — because she has lived it. She trained as a transportation engineer in her native Ukraine, but as a 19-year-old in the U.S., she found her degree was not accepted.

Instead, she volunteered in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Tacoma’s St. Joseph Medical Center to qualify for benefits. Other nurses took note of her can-do attitude and natural ability and suggested she pursue nursing studies. Piddubna trained first as a nursing assistant and then earned a bachelor’s degrees in nursing. She currently holds three jobs: as a nurse in the NICU, a nursing instructor at Bates Technical College and — her labor of love — leader of TSA. 

When refugees from the war in Ukraine began arriving in Tacoma in 2022, many sought safety and support at the Slavic Christian Center. Piddubna, who is married to a church deacon, helped organize assistance. “Families were sleeping on the floor of the church,” she remembers. “At one point, we had 18 people living in our home.”

The state Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance heard about the work being done at the Slavic Christian Center and encouraged Piddubna to apply for grants. Piddubna and her collaborators worked with the IRS to revive a lapsed church-sponsored non-profit that had gone dormant, and TSA was reborn. 

TSA now receives grant funding from multiple agencies and is one of 14 organizations currently partnered with Connect Pierce, Elevate Health’s care hub that supports the vital work carried out by community-based workers and improves local health and wellness outcomes through community-based care coordination.

Between February 2022 and July 2024, TSA has reached more than 1800 Ukrainians, more than 300 Russians and others affected by regional instability. Staff members and volunteers speak Ukrainian, Russian, Moldavian and Polish, as well as English.

Kim Deynaka is the director of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at St. Joseph Medical Center. She also oversees the work of TSA’s three community-based workers who help clients access needed medical and social services. She says it can be difficult for new immigrants to understand the American health care system.

“Back home, they just go to the doctor and walk in,” she explains. “They may not understand making an appointment online.”

TSA connects clients to important public resources through community workshops. Recent workshops have included preventive health with the Department of Health, guidance on business regulations with the Department of Revenue and Small Business Administration, and a summary of public benefits with the Department of Health and Human Services. 

“Our intention is to help people as much as possible,” says Piddubna. “All day, we are informing people, step-by-step, what they need to do.”

TSA also runs a social media channel that translates English community announcements into Slavic languages and connects about 2,500 people via a chat forum. Community members share tips on topics like how to get an ORCA card or how to apply for food vouchers.

The federal government’s recent increase in immigration enforcement has made some local Slavic refugees apprehensive about showing up to TSA events and engaging with the organization. Federal action has also meant the withdrawal of some grants that has resulted in a reduction of TSA’s staff. 

But Piddubna remains optimistic. She says TSA will be pursing private grants and donations, and she plans to expand TSA’s digital outreach to serve more individuals online. She also hopes to extend TSA’s services to immigrants from other cultures. 

“The United States is a country built on immigration,” Piddubna says. “Some people immigrated long ago, others are still arriving today, and more will come in the future. We are here to help.”

ABOUT THE STORYTELLERS:
-Writer Debbie Cafazzo is a Tacoma-based freelance journalist and communications professional. She was a reporter for 25 years at the Tacoma News Tribune where she covered education, health care, breaking news and a variety of other subjects.
-Photographer John Froschauer is a Tacoma-based photographer who has shot for the Associated Press for nearly 30 years. He also recently retired from Pacific Lutheran University where he served as the campus photographer for more than a decade.