30 years after arriving in St. John's, this former newcomer returned to say thanks

When Alexandr Pugachev entered the St. John's harbour on a Russian fishing trawler in 1993, he knew it was his best chance to escape and start a new life.

Pugachev had been working on the ship as a doctor. On the May long weekend, the crew arrived in Newfoundland to get food and water, and then continue their journey — but Pugachev had no intentions of going back home.

"I really hoped that we would be stopping somewhere so I can get out of the boat and escape from Russia. And that happened," said Pugachev.

"That was my golden opportunity. I didn't have a choice. I came here by God's will and I'm so happy that that happened."

Life in the Soviet Union wasn't easy, he said.

Around the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, many coming to St. John's — sailors and travellers — attempted to defect. Pugachev was at sea when the country disintegrated and the boat he was on was sold.

Once in St. John's, Pugachev went directly to the Association for New Canadians on Military Road and, with the help of a translator, he explained his intentions of staying in Canada. Ten months later, his application for asylum was granted.

Now, 30 years later, Pugachev returned to the city that offered him refuge — to express gratitude and reconnect with his helpers from back then.

"I came back to celebrate my milestone and to reflect on my life. And I came to this association again to say 'thank you' and sort of to show my appreciation," he said.

"Unfortunately, things are changing and 30 years, it's a big chunk of time, and nobody was around from those times. But I really felt the same atmosphere and very welcoming environment."

While he was greeted with open arms when he first arrived, said Pugachev, settling down in a foreign country with little knowledge of the language and no support network was still challenging.

"I didn't have money. I didn't have a car. I was walking everywhere. And it's a different perspective now, when I came as a physician and I just staying in a nice hotel," said Pugachov.

"Before, when I was here, my weekly budget was $5. So, I spent $5 on food and I pretty much tried to save any penny I could because the life was really unknown in the future. I didn't know what to expect."

After months in the province, Pugachev relocated to Edmonton, where some of his friends had settled down. He learned English, attended the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology and, after a two-year program, became a paramedic. Wanting to get back into his career, Pugachev moved to Saskatchewan to finish three-year postgraduate medical training and become a physician. After that, he moved to British Columbia, where he still lives today, with his own family practice.

Gratitude for a chance to start over in Canada — a country he knew little about before coming — played a role in why he wanted to come back to St. John's, he said.

"I didn't really know what the difference would be between U.S. or Canada. So, to me that was all, like, New World America," said Pugachev. "After living for a few years in Canada, I realized how safer and how much better it is as a country for people like me to get some support."

And to people like him, Pugachev also wants to offer words of advice.

"I really want to encourage people who, in their desperation, might [follow] the same steps and try to start new life. I just want to tell anyone that everything is possible in this nice country," he said.

"You just have to work hard, be patient and just do the best and things will work out well."

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