A basketball player from Prince George’s County who recently made it back after escaping Ukraine received a sweet welcome home from relieved loved ones.
County native Maurice “Mo” Creek was playing professionally there when the Russian invasion began. There were times when he didn’t know if and when he’d ever escape Ukraine.
“I’m just happy to get out of it, I’m just happy to be with my family, my friends and my whole community,” Creek said.
Creek had to stay in a bomb shelter with walls thick enough to withstand the heavy blasts.
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He sent a text to his mom, telling her, “I love you mom.”
“Our son should never have been in the midst of a war,” Pammy Morgan, Creek’s mother, said while clinging to his arm. “You never would’ve thought in a million years that something like this would happen.”
Creek’s journey to escape was long to say the least. It took him through Moldova and Romania, and finally on Thursday, back home to Prince George’s County.
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“When I got here, that’s when I felt all the pressure and everything, the whole weight on my back just [fell] down, so I’m just happy,” Creek said.
At the welcome home party, there were hugs all around.
“There is really no word. I give all thanks and praise to the most high God and that’s all that I can do,” Morgan said.
But while he was glad to be back, Creek said he couldn’t stop thinking about all the people he left behind.
“I just want to pray for them, I’m still sick, I mean I’m here, but I feel bad for them,” he said. “You know, my brothers that I built a bond with, my coaching staff that coached me and tried to make me into the best player I could be.”
