Ukraine's most vulnerable refugees helped by Polish man and his sister in Tampa

TAMPA, Fla. - Four mothers who fled with their children from the war zone in Ukraine are getting help from a man in Poland and his sister who lives in Tampa. 

From her home on Davis Islands, Elzbieta Greene is helping her brother, Andrzej Gorecki provide the women and children with food and shelter while they watch their country being destroyed by invading Russian troops. The husbands and fathers of these four families stayed behind to fight.

Elizbieta’s brother is a bus driver in Warsaw, but now he’s also a caretaker for a houseful. It started inside a bus station where he was surrounded by refugees. He realized he had to do something to help.

On a video chat with Elizbieta and FOX 13, Andrzej said when he saw the crowds of people, the feelings were overwhelming. 

He said to himself, "Don’t just look at [them], you need to help them."

Through thousands of dollars in donations collected by Elizbieta, from friends, family and kind strangers across Tampa Bay, she and Andrzej were able to start providing families with food, shelter, and perhaps a little bit of peace.

It began with 11 people -- mostly young children and their moms—and grew to a group of 20. They hope to help more. 

"At first, they were scared, but day-by-day, now we're friends, we're like a family," Andrzej said.

Elizbieta described what the refugees might be going through, saying, "Imagine you pick up everything you own in your two hands and your kid and you travel a long distance to safety. They felt so lonely." 

For her, the war in Ukraine is opening old wounds. 

"I have experienced things on the streets, long ago in 1980 in Poland. I never thought I would see that again in Europe," she said.

With the UN reporting roughly 10 million Ukrainians forced to leave their homes, Elizbieta says every little bit helps. 

"This little help we can do with my brother on the ground, with the help of generosity here, I think this is [the] least we can do. It fills my heart with a little bit of joy," she said.