'He'll be able to walk again': Ukrainian refugee living in the Triangle needs new $11K prosthetic leg

Oleksandr Karikh said a new prosthetic leg will cost about $11,000, which is something he simply can’t afford on his own.

Karikh damaged his prosthesis in the chaos of escaping a war zone. His apartment building in Mariupol is in ruins.

"He said his leg almost got destroyed while they were running and saving their lives multiple times a day,” Olha Karikh told WRAL News while translating for her father.

Karikh and his wife, Larisa, grabbed important documents and their two cats before driving to the Romanian border, dodging land mines. Olha Karikh flew her parents to North Carolina.

The couple is living with their daughter in the town of Fuquay-Varina.

“They’re basically starting their life over now,” Olha Karikh said of her parents.

Oleksandr Karikh hopes to walk again without pain.

Decades ago, Oleksandr Karikh lost his leg in a railroad accident. He’s worn a prosthesis ever since.

A nonprofit called Ukrainians in the Carolinas put the Karikh family in touch with Del Bianco Prosthetics and Orthotics in Raleigh. Owner Jim Del Bianco thought maybe he could fix the old prosthesis.

“It became clear that he really needed a new system,” Del Bianco said.

“We're getting him a new prosthesis,” Del Bianco said.

As of Monday afternoon, they’ve raised $500. Del Bianco said the clinic plans to cover the remaining cost, regardless of how much the GoFundMe raises.

“He’s happy that he’ll be able to walk again,” Olha Karikh said of her father.

Oleksandr Karikh has gone to the clinic a few times to get fittings for his prosthesis. Del Bianco said he will have his new prosthetic leg within the next week or two.

“To be able to see his smile when he's come in, and I see his gratitude,” Del Bianco said. “In a world where we have so many difficulties right now, that little bright spot makes you just light up inside."