Ukraine council Bad Nauheim: strong voices for refugee women!

The Ukraine Council in Bad Nauheim was founded in September 2023 to offer refugee people from Ukraine. Yuliia Mekheda and Tetiana Saienko are responsible for the management of the council. A club was scheduled shortly, for which an application has already been submitted to the Friedberg District Court. On August 1, 2024, a general meeting took place in which Mekheda and Saienko were confirmed in their positions, together with Pamela Kern.

An important goal of the Ukraine council is to strengthen the trust of new refugees. The activities of the council include participation in local events. In July 2024, the Ukraine Council was represented for the first time with its own stand at the international festival in Bad Nauheim. Ukrainian dishes and a creative program were offered there, supported by the International Club and the Foreigners' Advisory Board. Over 3,000 Wareniki, 300 pancakes, 80 gingerbread and 36 liters of Borschtsch were prepared, whereby the winning of the festival was donated for warps.

activities and challenges

The integration of refugee women is largely positive; Many have succeeded in finding apartments and attending jobs or language courses. Despite the existing prejudices that Ukrainian women do not want to work, most women have been able to reach jobs in various areas and strive to be independent and to stand on their own feet. In addition, the Ukraine Council is involved in German society, for example through appearances at the Christkindlmarkt.

The foundation of the "Ukrainer Council Bad Nauheim" took place on May 27, 2023 as part of a neighborhood festival, in which Mayor Klaus Kreß and Steffen Hensel, chairman of the social committee, also took part. The support from the neighborhood aid Bad Nauheim e.V. plays an important role because it wants to establish the council as the mouthpiece of the Ukrainian community in exile.

The founders of the council, including Tetiana Saienko, Oleksiy Ryepka and Yuliia Mekheda, have promised the organization of a democratic choice for the Ukrainian community to represent the Council. Traugott Arens, chairman of the neighborhood aid Bad Nauheim e.V., underlined the importance of a self-determined life for the Ukrainian neighbors and that the board decided to give Tetiana Saienko a guest-Beisitz on the board. The aim is to collaboration with the refugees at eye level and the promotion of acceptance and integration through cooperation with other clubs and organizations.