This article is from page 37 of the 2008-09-23 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 37 JPG
IT’S been a long, sometimes difficult journey for Valentyna Dalifhevska, but she is now looking forward to the next chapter of her life in Ennis.
12 years ago, Valentyna left her home in the Ukraine to move to Ire- land. It was a hard start to life in a new country. Valnetyna’s young son was very ill and needed to be hospi- talised. Over the course of the next year, he underwent 18 operations at hospitals in Dublin and Limerick. The treatment was successful and af- ter a while Valentyna and her young family settled in Ennis. On Sunday, Valentyna opened Valans Bistro, in the Friary Car Park, Ennis.
The bistro specialises in serving mainly eastern European food but the menu also includes many famil- iar dishes.
After the trials of her early years in Ireland, Valentyan is delighted to be opening her own business in her new home.
“It was very difficult for us when we came here first. My son was very sick, he was in hospital a lot. He 1s still living in Ennis and he is doing fine now and my daughter is has just finished school.”
Valentyna worked for a while as chef’s assistant in Ukraine. It has always been her dream to open her own restaurant.
“We will be serving eastern Eu-
ropean food, Russian food but also we will cook Irish meat, Irish food. There are a lot of Russian type res- taurants in Dublin and Limerick. This is my idea, to open a restaurant in Ennis. It is my dream to do it”.
During the period of her son’s ill- ness, Valentyna received support from campaigner Adi Roche. Roche is the founder of the Children’s Cher- nobyl Project (CCP) and has worked tirelessly over the past 20 years to provide aid to the children of Belarus and the Ukraine.
Roche along with the former Presi- dent of Ireland, Mary Robinson, championed Valentyna’s case for staying in Ireland when she faced deportation.
So, by way of thanking Roche, Valentyna turned the opening day of her business into a fundraiser. Food at Valans Bistro was free but custom- ers were asked to make donations to the CCP.
“She (Adi Roche) helps a lot of chil- dren in Belarus but also sick children in Ukraine. I wanted to do something to pay them back. I wanted to do something from my heart”.
Valentyna feels she has really set- tled in Ennis, where she calls home.
‘It is the best town in the world. I have settled down for good. I can still visit my family in Ukraine but I love this country. I can start my life again from the first page. My children are happy and I am happy.”