APOPKA, Fla. — For weeks, Yulia Gerbut dismissed the rumors swirling around the streets of Kiev and warnings flying out of Washington. Ukraine would not be invaded, she said. There was nothing to worry about.

“Everybody was like, they are just threat and they’re just showing their weapons and troops of soldiers at the border,” she said, under the assumption Russian leaders were attempting to strengthen their hand at the negotiating table.

>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<

Three weeks later, Gerbut was not recalling her thoughts to friends at her favorite café. She was standing next to a tennis court in Apopka, Florida, after fleeing Kiev with her sons when the bombings began.

For those who believe everything happens for a reason, Gerbut’s journey to Apopka was a twist of fate. A journey that stretched back to a time before she had children — and long before any sign of conflict emerged between the eastern European countries.

Fleeing Kiev

Gerbut’s connection to Central Florida began during her schooling, when she came to Apopka to study abroad in 2004.

LIVE RADAR: Weekend forecast brings threat of severe winds, isolated tornado

After a failed placement, her host mother, Megan, said a church connection convinced them to take Gerbut in. The relationship flourished long after Gerbut returned to Europe, with consistent communication and later, biennial visits back to the United States.

Megan said she called Gerbut the night of the bombing, then again after the invasion started. Without kids, Gerbut said she would have stayed and fought, and tended to the children she worked with as a social worker. However, her boys took priority.

She loaded Nikita, 11, and Max, 14, into her car and drove west to Lviv, and then to the border with hundreds of thousands of others.

READ: Russia attacks Ukraine: Explosions heard as Russian troops move closer to Kyiv (live updates)

See photos in the gallery below:

ExpandAutoplay

Image 1 of 10

Bryan Nelson Apopka, FL mayor Bryan Nelson in March 2022. (Nick Papantonis)

Once they crossed, she knew she needed to keep going.

“We have friends in Germany, in Czech Republic where we could say, but I knew that coming here would be most comfortable,” she said, adding that her husband’s job was based in California.

They arrived March 3 — and Gerbut tried to quickly get her sons settled in.

“My first goal was to enroll them into school,” she said. “Tennis was number two priority because they play tennis a lot at home.”

READ: Scott Kelly gets in tweet war after Russian suggests US astronaut will be left in space

The language of sports

Gerbut’s presence next to those Apopka courts, with TV cameras filming her children’s practice, happened through a series of fateful events. Not only did she make it to America, but she also found a sympathetic coach in Peter Fazekas.

Fazekas will tell you his life revolves around tennis. The powerfully-built man races around the court, commanding the attention of his pupils even as yellow balls fly in every direction. It is a controlled chaos that comes from decades of teaching.

Gerbut found his organization, Tennis Galaxy, and inquired about a temporary scholarship to give her sons something to look forward to. Fazekas’ team welcomed them in.

READ: Billy Joel is coming to Orlando this weekend: 9 things to know about the Piano Man

“I’m from Hungary, so I’m the next country over. If the Russians decide to move one more country over, that’s going to be my home country,” he said. “The front is less than 150 miles away from where I grew up.”

He said his initial concerns were about the boys’ English abilities, which were quickly put to rest. While their confidence in speaking the language was shaky, they understood most things said to them.

In any case, English isn’t really a requirement to hit the courts.

READ: Disney to pause all business in Russia in response to crisis in Ukraine

“The ball bounces the same exact same way, whether you’re in Europe, in South America or North America,” Fazekas said. He also said the kids in his youth groups were excellent about making the boys feel welcome without making much fuss.

However, his team decided to do more, realizing the family left without much planning and had bills to pay from their relocation. Tennis Galaxy organized a fundraiser for them, though Gerbut is adamant about paying it forward. She said the Mariupol hospital that Russian forces destroyed as they laid siege to the city was the one she was born in. Her parents, she said, were trapped in the city.

She said her goal was to quickly obtain a permit to work, and extra donations would be sent to Ukraine to help doctors rebuild.

Watch: Disney pauses film releases in Russia

“Watching your past like we you know, the place where your childhood was, just they just turn it into dust,” she explained. “It just breaks my heart.”

As for her boys, their plans are simpler: do well in school, play lots of tennis and make a few friends before eventually heading home.

“Everyone speaks different language,” Max Gerbut marveled, of the American school system. “[No friends] yet, but hopefully soon.”

Russia attacks Ukraine: What you need to know Ukraine urged caution after Russia announced withdrawal from the city of Kherson. (NCD)

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

©2022 Cox Media Group