Celebrating Lenny and Moishe’s 1st Birthday: A Triumph of Resilience

Lenny and Moishe, the twins born in war-torn Kyiv, have come a long way since their parents Alex Spektor (who was born in Kyiv) and Irma Nuñez watched in horror as both the war and their surrogate's due date approached simultaneously.[0] A specialist evacuation team of U.S. Army veterans, led by Bryan Stern, managed to transport the fragile babies out of the hospital and across the border to Poland, where their father waited.

The journey was a treacherous one, with Russian shelling, complex border crossings and a snowstorm.[0] But the twins made it, and now they get to celebrate their first birthday — a victory both for their family and the people who helped get them out of Kyiv.[1]

As for the parents, Irma says that watching Lenny dance “is just the most joyful thing I've experienced in a long time.”[0] Alex says Moishe is “like a little tank” — powerful, straightforward, and headstrong. Parenting twins leaves little time for birthday party planning, but the parents are more than content to celebrate the twins' routine lives.[1] Alex says that the most thrilling part of their day as a family is sometimes just looking at the babies' poop.[0]

At the same time, the parents are aware of the war that continues to rage in the city where their sons were born. As Alex puts it, “our sons are intricately connected to what's happening in Ukraine right now.”[0]

While the twins' story is a testament to resilience, we must remember that not everyone gets to feel safe right now, especially in Ukraine.[1] So, happy birthday, Lenny and Moishe, and here's to the future.[1]

0. “They were born into war. Now, they're celebrating their first birthday in the U.S.” WUTC, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.wutc.org/2023-02-24/they-were-born-into-war-now-theyre-celebrating-their-first-birthday-in-the-u-s

1. “They were born into war. Now, they’re celebrating their first birthday in the U.S.” WBHM, 24 Feb. 2023, https://wbhm.org/npr_story_post/they-were-born-into-war-now-theyre-celebrating-their-first-birthday-in-the-u-s/

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