Brian Fenoglio’s recent visit to his hometown of Knoxville is a big change from what life is like for him in his current home in Moldova.

Moldova is a small country that borders Ukraine. They recently were able to make it back to Brian’s hometown of Knoxville to visit for the first time in four years. The Covid-19 pandemic and their proximity to the country of Ukraine, which has been under attack from Russia, made them unable to come back to the United States for quite some time. 

While they were home they got to do fun things like visit the state fair and be in town for the Knoxville Nationals. Life in Knoxville, IA, is far different than being in a country so close to devastating warfare. 

Brian and his wife gave a presentation about life in Moldova at the Knoxville Public Library and  talked about what life is like in Moldova compared to small town Iowa. Dorina was 38 weeks pregnant when Russia invaded Ukraine and it changed what everyday life is like for them at their home in Moldova. 

People had urged Brian and Dorina to leave the county after the invasion but due to Dorina’s high risk pregnancy they elected to stay. 

“We had some family begging us to leave with them and to go to Romania where we could be safe. My employer also called me and told me I needed to grab my family and go. We elected not to do that. Dorina was 38 weeks pregnant.”

Hear more from Brian and Dorina about their experience in Moldova today’s Let’s Talk Knoxville.