Gleb Kupriianov turned seventeen on Sunday, but he still hopes to receive his most important birthday present. The boy who fled from Ukraine would really like to have a room in Den Bosch. Gleb still lives in Dalfsen near Zwolle, but studies in the capital of our province. “To get to class on time, I have to get up at five o’clock.”
Gleb came to the Netherlands with his parents last spring. Although they were with him for a while, they have now returned to support their countrymen. His mother is a psychologist and his father a physiotherapist.
“If I go back to Ukraine I have to join the army.”
“My father helps people there physically and my mother helps them mentally,” says Gleb. Although he would like to help himself, it is too risky for him to return to Ukraine. “I would probably have to join the army. Moreover, it is uncertain whether I would be able to leave Ukraine later if I wanted to.”
Fortunately, Gleb soon felt at home in the Netherlands. “I have a very good teacher in Dalfsen, he teaches me Dutch,” he shares enthusiastically. “And I like to play the piano. I already started doing that in Ukraine, but I have made great strides in the Netherlands over the past year and a half,” says Gleb, who provides piano and organ concerts as a volunteer.
Gleb also wants to work on his future here. That is why he went to study international business in Den Bosch, at Avans Hogescholen. This four-year course is a challenge, especially because of the travel back and forth from Zwolle. “A single journey by train takes more than two hours. I often have to get up at 5 am to get to classes on time and I come home late. It is almost impossible to keep up.” That is why he has been looking for a room in Den Bosch for some time.
“I hope for a host family with whom I can play board games.”
And that is not easy, because as an international student he does not have a wide budget. Julia Reijers from Voorschoten therefore stands up for him. Even before the war in Ukraine, she and others worked for refugees from Moldova. That’s how she came into contact with Gleb. “A very friendly, talented and musical boy,” she thinks. “He is looking for host families who can help him with a room.”
Gleb is grateful for Julia’s help: “It is almost impossible to find a room yourself. Julia has a large network,” he says. He hopes for a warm family with whom he can build a good bond. “We often play board games with my own family. Since they returned to Ukraine, I miss that enormously. I now hope to find that with a family close to Den Bosch, so that I don’t have to travel so far anymore.”