When war came to her hometown, Bucha in the Ukraine, mother-of-two Mariia Mykytiuk faced an impossible choice: abandon her community in need, or send her children ahead to safety and stay behind. Mariia, a skilled veterinarian, chose to remain in Ukraine and endured the torment of the Russian occupation. During this time she threw herself into action, treating people and animals with her medical skills, supporting neighbours and her community. Finally, after much heartache, she made the treacherous journey to Australia and was reunited with her children. Here, we see her new life and fresh start beginning. But a piece of her heart is still in the Ukraine where her husband and the father of her children is fighting for his life and the freedom of his country.