Ukrainian Oksana lives with Heerhugowaard’s family: “Feels very obvious”

Oksana (affectionately known as Oksi), Frank and Sandra recount their past two months in a sun-drenched garden. Oksi, who comes from the Ukrainian capital Kiev, decided after long hesitation to leave the war in her country. Through a friend she eventually ended up with Frank and Sandra and their three children aged 13, 11 and 9.

For Sandra it used to be customary to have people at home. She was raised on a farm and in her youth there were always trainees, contractors and children who were having a hard time. Sandra: “We shared in our network that we would be open to taking in someone from Ukraine and that’s how the ball started rolling.”

As a matter of course

Then they set to work to create the best possible stay. A room – formerly a children’s playroom – has been prepared for Oksi by the whole family.

“Everything a woman needs can be found there; I lack nothing,” the Ukrainian says gratefully. She has a place to retreat and shares the kitchen and bathroom with the family. “Of course it took some getting used to to suddenly live in Heerhugowaard, but it soon felt very natural,” says Oksi.

She continues: “Like many Ukrainian people, I was forced to flee because of the war. That was a very difficult decision. I was also afraid of the unknown. Of course I have my own family at home and thought a lot about whether the children of Frank and Sandra would also accept me.”

And accept, they do, says Sandra: “A few weeks ago we all went to the Cheese Museum in Alkmaar for a day. We also went to the beach together. I don’t have to ask the children if they like it when Oksi comes along, it feels very natural.”

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Daughter Isabel also likes to paint with her new roommate and they talk about ballet together. “I feel very happy in this family. The children have a lot of knowledge and I think it is fantastic to see how everyone interacts with each other. Full of love and mutual respect.”

In her mind, Oksi is preoccupied with the war in her homeland – and with her parents and sisters who still live in Ukraine. “I’d rather not watch the news, because I can’t influence the situation anyway,” she says.

No war over dinner

It is therefore little about the De Jong family: “Of course we sometimes talk about it when the situation changes or it is in the news,” says Sandra. “But we know that Oksi is already working on it a lot during the day and try to talk about other things together.”

The Ukrainian likes that: “They try really hard to make sure I don’t think about it all the time. It doesn’t help me if we also talk about it during dinner at night.”

Oksana, who was a project manager in a candy factory before coming to the Netherlands, hopes to soon find a job that suits her. She knows that many other Ukrainians would like to too, but that the language is a barrier. “Anyone can do logistics work, but for people who don’t speak English, it’s difficult to start somewhere.”

She therefore hopes that the government can do something about this: “I hope that more free courses can be given, for example. We would like to return home, but we will be here for a while. Then it is important to learn the language. learn and get to work.”