Three years have passed since the Yukhymenko Family found refuge in Luxembourg from the war in Ukraine.
From Kyiv to Ternopil, from Ternopil to Germany, and from Germany to Luxembourg. The Yukhymenko family’s journey out of a war zone to a foreign country was marked with hardships and challenges. Today, the Yukhymenkos live in a house in Bissen. The parents have jobs,and the kids have built friendships and are studying in school. RTL paid the family a visit to see how they are coming to terms with their life in Luxembourg.
According to father Volodymyr Yukhymenko, the family had not heard much about Luxembourg before fleeing their home in February 2022. Before Russia launched its war against Ukraine, the family was already aware of the rising tensions between the two countries. Anticipating the possibility of having to flee, they began making preparations. Ten days before the war erupted, they left for Kyiv, in the western part of the country, before making their way to Luxembourg on March 8, 2022.
He continued: “At the beginning, we really did not think of leaving the country, but the situation at the time became so difficult that we could not foresee what the future held for us anymore. Our friend Olga, who lives in Luxembourg invited us to come to here, and that’s when we decided to leave Ukraine.”
Once they arrived in Luxembourg, the family was received by a foster family in Leudelange before being offered an apartment in Bissen. “We feel comfortable and safe here, it’s a good municipality, and the mayor helped us greatly,” mother Kseniia Yukhymenko shared. With three kids and a fourth on the way, Kseniia continued: “The appartment was completely empty in the beginning, the people from the municipality then came with a list and asked us what we needed. ‘Tell us everything that you need, do you need this, do you need that?’ ‘Yes maybe?’ I replied. Two days later they came back, and the whole apartment was furnished. That was a huge surprise for us, and we are so grateful.”
Their son Illia is 17 years old and dreams of Ukraine’s accession to the EU. Currently enrolled at Lycée Emile Metz, he is happy to be studying something he enjoys, IT, just like his father. He shared: “When we first arrived here, I was pretty scared to go to school because everything was so new. I thought no one would understand me, and that I will struggle to integrate. But this wasn’t the case in the end. At first I was put in integration classes with other Ukrainians, taught by Luxembourgish and French teachers. It was interesting to talk to them about Luxembourg, the education system, how to eventually find a job, very helpful.”
11-year-old Solomiia attends primary school in Bissen, and now even speaks Luxembourgish: “I learned French for two years, and now I’m learning a little German and Luxembourgish because I speak it with my friends and teachers as well. Maths is easier for me as I already studied it back home.“
The Yukhymenkos have come to terms with their life in Luxembourg and have integrated themselves well. However, their family and friends in Ukraine miss them. Every Sunday, the family talks to them over FaceTime. In their free time, the family enjoys listening and playing music with Volodymyr playing the guitar and Kseniia and their children singing Ukrainian folk songs.
Watch the original report in Luxembourgish below