Roman Vaschuk admitted to taking some medication for his anxiety, as he paced around the baggage claim area at SeaTac Airport.
"I didn't sleep today," he said as he held a couple dozen roses, looking down the escalator for the international arrivals.
Vaschuk has been stranded in the United States for several weeks, after coming to America for a church singing tour. But, after he was hospitalized with COVID, doctors discovered a blood clot near his heart. He was told he couldn't return home.
Then, the Russians invaded Ukraine. His wife Roza, and their three kids left Kyiv, and put everything in a bag and fled to Poland.
On Monday, they stepped out onto an elevator at SeaTac, as Roman waited with a couple dozen roses.
"Papa!" shouted 10-year-old Milana and 7-year-old Nathan as their sprinted to the man by the escalators. Roza, holding 20-month-old Solomiya, fresh off a long flight from Amsterdam followed suit. No translation was needed. The family had been finally reunited.
"I prayed about this moment a lot," confided Roman. "Big day".
It had been three months since the family had been together.
"It was very scary, streets are destroyed," said Roza, who said she was nervous anytime she heard anything in the skies in Poland. "Bombs come and everything destroyed, it's very scary and every time I heard the sound of the plane it make me nervous," she said.
Vaschuk's story came to light after he performed the Ukrainian anthem at a recent Seattle Kraken game. He said outside of perhaps attending another game, the family will take it day by day.
"A lot of hugs," he said, "A lot of hugs."