‘We are living in waiting’: Ukrainians in Hartlepool look back on a year of war

Lyudmyla Vasyutina holds out her hands to show two tiny pieces of shrapnel from a missile that exploded near her home in Zaporizhzhia.

She brought them all the way from Ukraine as a reminder of how fragile human life is and says she will carry them with her for the rest of her life.

The 72-year-old arrived in Hartlepool back in October after staying in Lviv in Western Ukraine – where she witnessed another missile attack.

“I’m very sad. I wish the war could finish now,” Lyudmyla said.

"In Ukraine we don’t have any place that is not dangerous. Everywhere is dangerous.”

‘Surreal’ anniversary

Emotions are running high as a year has gone by since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. Ukrainian asylum seekers, who have been meeting at the Salaam Centre in Murray Street, have expressed concern of more attacks on their homeland around the time of the anniversary.

"I try not to think about this, not to make it a special day,” says Iryna Tykhonenko, who arrived in Hartlepool last June with children Solomiia, eight, and Mark, two.

Back in January, the husband of Iryna’s sister died after getting injured in Bakhmut, which is in the frontline region of Donetsk.

"This really changed the feeling of the war. Now it became personal,” Iryna said.

"I just try not to think about this day. To expect neither good, nor bad, just live it.”

Recent Hartlepool arrival Maria Reznyk has described the approaching anniversary as “surreal”.

The 34-year-old left Ukraine in April and spent some time in Greece before coming to Hartlepool. Maria’s three brothers remain in Ukraine, while her parents are in Poland.

"It’s so surreal that this is happening in the 21st century. I was sure that people learned their lesson from World War II,” she said.

"I think no one believed it was going to be that serious.

"This anniversary reminds us how long it took and how much we still have to do get our country back.”

Maria’s home city, Mykolaiv, was close to the frontline at the start of the conflict and she has described sleeping on the floor in the corridor, fully dressed up, in case an attack happened.

She visited family members there back in November and says she found the city of a population of 500,000 quiet and empty, with windows boarded up as nearly two-thirds of people had left.

"It’s very depressing to see such a big city empty,” the waitress said.

She added: "What you are doing for us is priceless.

"Even before we were saying that the UK is our best friend. We don’t even mind that Eurovision will be held in the UK, because you deserve it.”

Heartbreak and reward

It is hoped a meeting at the Salaam Centre on the day of the anniversary will give Ukrainians in the town a chance to support each other, with a free meditation session taking place on the morning as well.

The centre opened its doors to Ukrainians and future hosts back in March when the Big League CIC held a consultation as the town was preparing to welcome the first refugees arriving from the war-torn country.

According to figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities 40 Ukrainian refugee households had arrived in the Hartlepool area by October 4 last year under the sponsorship scheme from 50 successful applications.

Big League community engagement manager Fiona Cook has said helping out has been “rewarding”.

“It is also heartbreaking to see the anguish the families are feeling as the war continues with no end in sight,” she added.

"They thought they would be home in a few months and are now almost a year away from their families and friends, seeing their homes destroyed and some suffering loss of loved ones. The group gives them a feeling of community and solidarity.”

Iryna, 38, said: "All people I met here, they also became like family. All of them, they are so special to me now.

"It’s strange what this scheme does to people. It’s a miracle.

"The more I get to this town and these people, the more I’m impressed how supportive they are and how friendly they are.”

Iryna, who has been renting her own place since the end of last year, but is still in touch with her host family, added: “This war has taught us many lessons of how to survive and adapt, but the most important is that together we are strong, together we can win.

"The scheme is about “togetherness”, that’s what you realise after leaving your sponsor’s house. Love doesn’t stop, it becomes strong togetherness.”

Living in waiting

Iryna has not seen her husband, Vitalii, for almost a year now. A trip to Ukraine back in October did not go ahead after Russian air strikes hit the country once again – and time away from home is starting to take its toll.

“We may go home forever. One year is too long,” Iryna said.

"He is there and we are here and we are separated. We are living in waiting.

"I hope the war stops.”

To find out more about the Homes for Ukraine scheme, visit www.gov.uk/register-interest-homes-ukraine

Information is also available at the weekly Hartlepool Ukraine Support meetings at the Salaam Centre. Visit the Salaam Community Centre Facebook page for details.