London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 09, 2025

‘It’s a miracle’: Poles open their homes to Ukrainian refugees

‘It’s a miracle’: Poles open their homes to Ukrainian refugees

Newcomers feel blessed by kindness, while Polish hosts say they are enjoying the experience but could benefit from more state support.

Katya Nesteruk and Yulia Koval did not know each other well before the first missiles hit their hometown of Brovary, near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

But weeks later, on March 9, they stood together at the main train station in Krakow with nowhere to go, their two small children at their sides, their lives already intertwined.

Suddenly, a dark-haired woman appeared out of nowhere.

“Do you have a plan?” Magdalena Petersen asked. “Do you want to stay with me for a few days?”

Since the war in Ukraine began, most refugees have fled to Poland – about 2.3 million people so far.

Some found shelter in the dormitories organised by activists in Polish cities, while others have relied on the help of ordinary citizens, who have opened their homes to strangers fleeing war.

February 24 was Nesteruk’s husband’s birthday, but the couple did not celebrate. On that day, the first Russian rockets hit Brovary, close to their home. It felt like thunder, Nesteruk said.

They packed their bags in haste and left to join their relatives in western Ukraine.

“I thought that it would end after two weeks but it only got worse,” Nesteruk said. “We wanted to stay in Ukraine, but there is no safe place, no one knows where the missiles will fall. It’s impossible to sleep, everything is trembling, and you just sit and wait for the sirens.”

Nesteruk’s and Koval’s husbands, who are friends, advised the pair to leave together. They went to Slovakia and then Poland. When Petersen approached them at the train station, they could barely stand.

“At that time there was no more space for refugees in Krakow. I don’t have a separate flat but I prepared a room in my apartment and so did my Afghan neighbours, who were evacuated from Kabul last August,” Petersen said.

The women stayed with the Afghan family at first, but over the weeks, they have been staying with Petersen, too.

In the end, her friend, who currently lives in Germany, agreed that the two women and their children could stay in his place, right next to Petersen’s.

“I work in HR so I have no problem communicating with people from different environments and cultures. I like to travel, I have been to many countries, and I know that people everywhere are helpful and friendly,” said Petersen, who previously hosted African students fleeing Ukraine.

“I had situations abroad when I couldn’t find a hotel and local people would always host me in their homes. I didn’t want the kids to sleep on the floor at the train station. When you talk to people, get to know them, it’s easier to accept them at your home.”

Petersen’s twins and Yulia’s daughter are all seven. They play together and communicate well despite the language barrier. There is not much of a cultural difference between them.

But some things in Poland surprised Nesteruk.

“I didn’t understand why everyone wanted to help us, the border guards, volunteers at train stations. People helped us with the bags, brought food, diapers, things for the children,” she said.

“I wonder what I would do in such a situation. Would I help people in need, accept them in my home? We were offered help by a stranger, but how did she know that we are good people? For me it’s a miracle that people here have so much trust.”

Bozena Pawlowska, pictured in her living room, says she feels empowered having helped Ukrainian refugees find shelter in Poland


Several other Ukrainian refugees Al Jazeera interviewed also said that they had not expected such a warm welcome.

“People in Poland help us with everything, they feed us, give us all we need, everyone has been good to us. We are forever grateful, we were hungry and they gave us everything, including toys for the children,” said Victoria, a 35-year-old accountant from Rivne.

She fled her hometown on February 28 with her mother Lila, a 14-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son.

When they arrived in Poland, they came across a Facebook group, where Bożena Pawłowska offered them a place to stay in Krakow.

Many families in the city now host refugees, while those who can’t offer food, medicines or clothes. Victoria’s daughter received a laptop from a kind local.

“When our sons moved out I renovated the first floor, [my husband] Piotr would sometimes spend time in there but in general the whole floor was empty. When the war started, we decided to help someone,” said Bożena Pawłowska, 49.

A marketing specialist, Pawłowska lost her job in December and fell into depression.

She said helping Victoria and her family soon proved to be the best cure.

“I think that nothing happens without a reason. Volunteering showed me that I can be useful. Now I think it’s time to start a business, and I’m no longer afraid to do so. I hope I will soon be active again,” Pawłowska said.

Her only complaint is directed towards the central government, which she says could do more. Although she will soon start receiving state support for hosting refugees, the additional costs of electricity and gas have impacted her family budget.

Wojciech Wojtasiewicz does not have this problem yet.

He has so far hosted refugees who stayed in Krakow short term.

Through a friend, the 37-year-old journalist got in touch with Alona Bazhok and her daughter Christina, who were on their way to Belgium.

“I was shocked to see a city so hospitable. You can feel a lot of kindness. I’ve never experienced that before. You enter a shop and everyone smiles at you, I’m not used to that,” Bazhok said.

Nine-year-old Christina added that a man on the street gave them a 100 zloty bill ($24) when he saw them trying to exchange hryvnias, now at a record low.

“I started crying. God bless Poland,” Bazhok says.

Wojtasiewicz said of his experience: “I used to sit at home with the news on and it had a bad effect on me. Now I finally feel that I’m making a difference.

“I know that I won’t help everyone, I won’t save the whole world. But I can make a change in a few individual lives.”

Wojciech Wojtasiewicz pictured with Alona Bazhok and her daughter Christina in Wojtasiewicz’s living room

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
×