Saukraine, the Ukraine project | Ukrainian Alex to service at Dickens

One year ago, Oleksandr Kutsina came to Norway with his wife Marina and their nine-year-old daughter. The man admits that he never planned to leave Ukraine, but then the war came.

– One day we were walking with our daughter and our friends, and a rocket flew over us. It fell less than a kilometer from us, it was a powerful explosion. After this incident, Ariana (9) did not speak for several days, she was very scared. After such situations, you begin to understand that children are the most important thing. That’s when we decided it was time to think about moving.

Oleksander’s small family initially arrived in Poland without any long-term plans. But later they came to Norway. Following general procedures for refugees, the Kutsina family received collective protection and settled in Sarpsborg. Little Ariana started going to gymnastics again. The parents sincerely want their daughter to continue her favorite sport, which she chose before the war.

Oleksandr soon started and his wife is attending a course, and the husband was already thinking about getting a job. Before the war, Oleksandr worked in a restaurant for almost ten years, so he immediately took the chance to practice Norwegian at Dickens in Sarpsborg. The familiar atmosphere of the bar and the “common restaurant language” helped him to quickly be included in the community at work. The owner of the pub, Jørgen Andersen, says that Alex (abbreviated from Oleksandr) is learning Norwegian quickly and is getting better at communicating with visitors.

– It is really luck that he is here, says Jørgen.

– I call him Alex and he learns very quickly. Because every time he asks “Jørgen, what is it? “What is this?”, then he writes down the answers in his blue notebook. So we help him, and he helps us.

Such a fateful meeting gave Alex not only the opportunity to learn a new language, but also hope for a future job at “Dickens Sarpsborg”. He has already been given a contract for minimum working hours.

– Alex is really good at what he does! That’s why I call in addition to the hours he visits by agreement with NAV – also when I need workers on Monday. I pay him money and give him hours because he works very well. Oleksandr wants to work, study, be here. And this is a real happiness for me, says the owner of the restaurant.

Alex’s story is a living example of how Ukrainians and Norwegians work well together. In such a difficult situation, Jørgen helped Alex to believe in himself and find a new goal. He feels useful and valued in a new country.