'Nightmare' has happy ending for Howell girls

Tea-h Evans clutches her daughters Ashley, 7, and Sophia, 3, very tight and promises never to let them go.

JEFF GRANIT staff Tea-h Evans holds her daughters, Ashley, 7, and Sophia, 3, in their Howell home on Aug. 29. The girls were the focus of an international effort in August after they became trapped in the Republic of Georgia during an invasion by Russian military forces. For about two weeks in August, the two little girls from Howell were trapped at their grandparents' home in the Republic of Georgia as Russian troops conducted an incursion into that country.

The girls' predicament became international news as people watched to see if they would be able to leave the country and be reunited with their parents in the United States.

The intervention of Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-N.J.), whose congressional district includes Howell, finally led to the girls' escape from a war zone in late August.

Tea-h Evans discussed the ordeal with Greater Media Newspapers recently. She explained that the Evans family travels to Georgia each summer for a vacation.

Tea-h Evans is a native of that country.

"When I saw what was happening [the Russian invasion] on the news, I said,

That's not my country.' We never thought this would happen," she explained.

The Evans family had traveled together to Georgia to visit the girls' maternal grandparents. Tea-h and her husband, Joseph, eventually returned to Howell and left their daughters with Tea-h's mother, Tamara Kipshidze, to remain for the rest of the summer.

"We left our girls with my mother because she is the best caregiver. I totally trust my parents. Since I've had my children, she has been there for me," Tea-h Evans said. "[In Georgia] we have a big house and yard for the kids to play in. I grew up there and don't remember ever being scared."

Upon seeing the Russian military begin its movement into Georgia, "my first thought was that this is very bad. It finally hit me when I saw the faces of my children on the television," she said.

Initially, her brother, Beso Tsutskiridze, traveled to Georgia in an attempt to reach Ashley and Sophia and to bring them to safety.

"My brother tried to bring the girls back, but he got caught in a war zone. He actually saw people die before him. That's when he decided to travel through the forest on foot for two days to my mom's house," Tea-h Evans said. "When we finally spoke, he told me it was too dangerous, the Russians were too close, and he could not get the girls."

She said when she heard that news from her brother in Georgia, she frantically urged her husband to act. It was at that point that the couple called Smith to see if he could take any action that would lead to the safe return of the children.

Smith answered the couple's call for help and traveled to Georgia. With the help of French Ambassador Eric Fournier, the girls and their uncle were reached and safely escorted out of the war zone.

Ashley and Sophia returned to the United States on Aug. 25 and were greeted by a swarm of media at Newark Liberty International Airport. It was a happy ending to a story that had captivated the Garden State for two weeks.

Joseph Evans said he is relieved the girls are home and have resumed their normal life. He said he has just come out of the "fog" and vowed never to relive what he called a nightmare.

"I can't even describe how we felt at the time. I lost sleep, my wife lost weight, just a nightmare," he said.

Although he said the girls are doing well, he recalled the phone conversations he had with Ashley during the time she and her sister were trapped in their grandparents' home. He said he could tell that she was somewhat affected by what was happening.

"When I spoke with her, I could sense something in her voice — it wasn't a happy call. I think she felt separated from us. She could feel the isolation and felt there was a wall," some kind of blockage, Joseph Evans said.

With his daughters safe at home in Howell, Joseph Evans just wants his family to continue its normal routine.

He said allowing the girls to spend time with their maternal grandmother is something he and his wife always do, but since the events of this summer unfolded, he said he would never let it happen again.

"Some children are fortunate enough to have their grandparents live three blocks away from them. We don't have that luxury. Their grandparents live miles away. My wife and her mom wanted the children to spend time together in their home country. That's the end of it … it's not going to happen again," he said.

Mary McDermott Noonan, a spokeswoman for Smith, said the proximity of the Russian troops made all the difference in the safe return of the girls.

"As their representative, Congressman Smith saw the danger. We spent time contacting different ambassadors, the White House and people at the State Department. We knew that proximity [of the Russian troops] could make all the difference.

"At the start of the process, the Russian troops were 55 miles away [from where the girls were staying]. Then Mrs. Evans' brother reported that they were 30 miles away. On their way back, it was reported that the Russian troops were within 10 miles. We believed that proximity definitely made all the difference," Noonan said.

According to Noonan, there are still 30 American children, including 13 from the New Jersey and New York area, who are stuck in Georgia. She said Smith is working with some of those families.

It is hoped that a group known as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will be able to get the youngsters out, Noonan said. The International Red Cross is also attempting to provide safe exit from Georgia.

Tea-h Evans summed up the events of the summer of 2008 when she said, "This situation was a total nightmare. It was hell. I had no idea there were so many kids trapped over there. My husband and I tried everything and the other parents need to do the same before it's too late."