Characters

Bobby works for the Federal Government and is an avid video game player with an enormous sci-fi memorabilia collection. He talks about his ex-wife's adultery and his longing for the perfect life – one with a wife, kids, and a white picket fence. Bobby admits that he is overweight by US standards, which is why he is looking for a wife abroad.

Eric is from Uvalde, Texas and currently lives in San Antonio, where he works as an Engineer. Eric has never had a serious relationship in the United States, but he has been to Ukraine on six different occasions and has dated over 50 women while visiting. He hopes to find a wife abroad.

Michael has had a rough love life: his first wife left him for another man, and his second wife died of Leukemia after they were only married 4 years. Mike currently lives in Brisbane, Australia, but is originally from South Africa. He believes that the women in Russia and Ukraine are truly beautiful and that is why he would like to marry a woman from Eastern Europe.

Robert is a successful construction foreman from Fresno, California who seeks a companion. He has never had problems dating women in the US, but decided to give international dating a shot because his father had success marrying a foreign woman. He is looking for a life partner and is extremely adamant about getting married again.

Ron is a 57 year-old divorced millionaire from Pinehurst, North Carolina. Ron has three grown children, and he has tried online dating sites domestically with little to no success. Ron decides to try something different and hopes to potentially find a woman internationally. Despite being in exceptional shape for his age, Ron wants someone to fall apart with, as he grows older.

Travis milks his cows on his family’s farm in Plain, Wisconsin. He longs for a wife but there are only two single women in his hometown, both of whom are divorcees. His circumstantial loneliness drives Travis to turn to something new. He has only ever had one serious relationship, and his luck has run out in his hometown, it is time for Travis to look another direction.

Inna, an intelligent blonde bombshell from Poltava, Ukraine who exemplifies all marketable characteristics of the stereotypical “Mail-Order Bride.” Inna is a successful young woman looking to have a family and a husband to take care of her and love her. Inna has passed her prime to find a husband in Ukraine, which is why she hopes to meet a foreign man to start a family with. Inna talks of how her desires and frustrations with finding somebody in Ukraine led her to turn towards International dating.

Svitlana is from Cherkassy, Ukraine and is a single mother with two daughters. She has raised her children by herself and says that any woman in Ukraine must learn to survive there by any means necessary or get out and emigrate. She corresponds with men from foreign countries hoping to find the promise of marriage in order to provide her children with a better life. Svitlana dictates the course of her family’s life.

Vitalina is a young girl who would like nothing more than to establish a family with a real man—a man with a capital “M,” who can support her and give her a family. She doesn’t care where this man comes from, but she believes that American men have good family values, which is why she is drawn to meeting a Westerner. Vitalina comes from a modest family in the rural city out of Nikolayev, Ukraine where living conditions can be tough. She was already married one time before, and is now looking for someone to settle down with permanently.

John Adams is the poster-boy for the mail-order bride phenomenon. He is an “average Joe” who met his wife of 14 years, Tanya, on a “Love Tour” in Russia. As founder of A Foreign Affair, the largest International Marriage Broker in America based in Phoenix, Arizona, John promotes his business by selling his personal success story to men looking for love. John believes that the best way to find a companion from a foreign country is to go over there and meet someone in person.

Elena Petrova is the former “Mail-Order Bride” turned business mogul, who lives the wealthiest neighborhood on the Gold Coast of Australia. She is the owner of “Elena’s Models” a website that provides foreigners a means of communication, particularly focusing on correspondence between Western men and women from Eastern Europe. Elena explains the reasons for seeking a foreign husband, both from her personal experience and from the statistics she has acquired over the years. Elena says, some women desire nothing more than to escape a life of hardship and poverty, and they believe that marrying a foreigner will solve these problems.

Bob Wray is one of A Foreign Affairs Tour Directors. He was a client of AFA, who had such a great time on tour that he decided to become a tour leader. He explains why it is that men decide to look in Ukraine. Bob says that these men have stopped having success in the United States, and that when they go to Ukraine, where they are bombarded with attention from women with traditional values that want to start a family.