As of: February 24, 2024, 5:00 a.m
By: Stefanie Zipfer
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Domivka e. wants to cultivate memories of Ukraine and make it easier to arrive in Dachau.
V. In the summer the association presented itself at the intercultural family festival.
These are the Ukrainian children in our photo.
© private
It is now the second anniversary of Russia's attack on Ukraine.
The two founders of the Dachau association Domivka tell us what the problem is for many Ukrainians here in Germany.
Dachau – The word Domivka means home, home, little house in Ukrainian.
Domivka is something warm, something comfortable, a good feeling.
When madness rages outside, Domivka should be safe and cozy.
No wonder that Nataliya Bach and Viktoriya Logvynska, two native Ukrainians who have lived in Dachau for many years, called their aid association for Ukrainian war refugees, founded in autumn 2022, “Domivka”.
In courses, but also via social media groups, the volunteers help you arrive, learn German and find your way through the jungle of authorities.
The Dachau district recognized this commitment last year with the Integration Prize; the Domivka volunteers received 500 euros in prize money for their important work.
Dachau association Domivka wants to give refugee Ukrainians a new home and is reaching its limits
When Bach and Logvynska look back on the past two years of war, they speak of a rollercoaster of emotions.
“At first we were in shock.” Then came the anger and this unbridled hatred.
After a brief moment of helplessness, the Ukrainians living in the district got together and decided to help.
“People suddenly did things that they had never done before.” Logvynska, for example, says: “I'm a saleswoman, my husband is a bus driver.” She never thought about organizing aid transport, making entries in German association registers, etc registering for integration courses.
In this context, Nataliya Bach, who came to Dachau in 2006 to study business administration at Munich's Ludwig Maximilian University, expressly thanks Oksana Bonauer from Dachau, who started with Ukraine aid in Dachau and set up a local Ukrainian network created the basis for the Domivka association.
“We didn’t just want to help with documents or accommodation, we wanted to build a community,” remembers Bach.
“The horror in Ukraine has become normal”
Today, two years after the start of the terrible war, even Bach and Logvynska have to admit that they are like many Germans.
Bach: “The horror in Ukraine has become normal.
If we thought about it all the time, we would go crazy.” Logvynska describes her mental state as “gray.
It's so bleak."
But both women also emphasize: “We Ukrainians are not giving up hope of winning this war!” They therefore ask the people of Dachau, who supported their compatriots so “infinitely generously” two years ago: “Don’t forget us, give us Don’t stop!” Above all, those responsible for Domivka are asking for understanding for their compatriots.
War refugees do not want to stay in Germany
“80 to 90 percent” of the war refugees arriving in Dachau are “not here voluntarily,” said Bach.
The Dachau district is “a temporary living space.
They're making arrangements, but in principle they just want to bridge the time until they can go back."
Logvynska also emphasizes that her compatriots did not come to “push the Germans.”
In general: “There are parasites everywhere.” Unfortunately, in the past few months the media has only shown the negative sides of the Ukrainian refugee flow.
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Ukraine refugee numbers rise to over 1,500 – contact Domivka
According to the latest figures from the Dachau District Office, there are currently
1,515 war refugees
from Ukraine in the Dachau district.
The fact that the 1,500-person mark was exceeded was “very rare,” as district office spokeswoman Sina Török emphasizes.
Of 1,515 Ukrainians,
447 are children, 711 are women and 357 are men
.
According to Török, the number of men is particularly remarkable.
Their numbers are increasing, whereas at the beginning of the war it was almost exclusively women and children who came.
453 Ukrainians live in state accommodation
in the district.
The largest of these are: the Hotel Amedia with 91 Ukrainians accommodated, the gymnasium on Steinstrasse, where 85 refugees live, the Irmengard house in Schönbrunn with 69 residents and a wooden stand facility in Erdweg that offers space for 40 people.
The rest of the Ukrainian refugees are housed in apartments.
The
aid association Domivka
e.
V. continues to collect donations for the people of Ukraine.
The
contact
: IBAN: DE38 7005 1540 0281 1552 00, Sparkasse Dachau, BIC: BYLADEM1DAH.
Important: specify “Help for Ukraine” as the intended purpose.
zip
According to the experiences of the Domivka helpers, the older refugees in particular are “sitting on packed suitcases”.
But that, according to Bach, is exactly the biggest mistake: “They neither arrived here nor are they at home in Ukraine.
They are nowhere, they cannot rest, they are not there spiritually.
It’ll make you go crazy!”
Reasons for problems with integration
The two women admit that this not having arrived here yet is one reason why many Ukrainians have difficulty with the German language and the German job market.
In addition, there is also the fact that many of the Ukrainian training courses are not recognized here.
Mothers in particular who have left home with their children often report that it is overwhelming for them to have to work in addition to looking after their homesick offspring.
“The pace is too high,” summarizes Nataliya Bach.
“People come here from a war zone and are supposed to attend an integration course a week later!”
Nevertheless, the Domivka makers think it’s “great” how many courses and opportunities the Germans give their fellow countrymen who have fled.
Currently, her work is mainly limited to giving children tutoring - both in German and in other subjects such as math or English.
Further supporters of this work would be, in the words of Viktoriya Logvynska, “warmly welcome”!
Association collects donations for Ukraine
Integration award for Domivka: The district office recognized the commitment of the volunteers last year.
The Helios Amper clinics were also honored.
© Dachau District Office
The association also continues to collect donations in kind for Ukraine.
From clothing for people to food for animals and monetary donations, the Domivka makers are grateful for every donation.
Speaking of grateful: Viktoriya Logvynska thinks that – despite all the love they have for their new homeland – Germans should be a little happier and more grateful.
“People here are upset because the S-Bahn isn’t coming!” Given the war that has been raging in Ukraine for two years now, an unpunctual train is “really not that bad.”