Baltimore Sun

For refugees in Romania, helping others a way to cope

- By Chisato Tanaka

BUCHAREST, Romania — Elena Trofimchuk fled Ukraine to Romania more than a month ago. She now sees Bucharest’s North Railway Station as a second home.

She doesn’t live there, but it’s where she spends most of her day welcoming fellow Ukrainian refugees escaping from Russia’s war and helping them sort out tickets, accommodat­ion and onward destinatio­ns.

The 26-year-old said that keeping herself busy and useful keeps her from dwelling on Russia’s shelling of her hometown, Odesa, where many of her friends remain.

“If you sit and do nothing, you can just become crazy because you’re always searching for news. It’s very hard. So here I can help people buy tickets and find accommodat­ions. I even help Romanians in the kitchen,” Trofimchuk said.

Before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, she worked as a photograph­er.

Trofimchuk is just one of many orangevest­ed Ukrainian volunteers working at the station.

Ukrainian volunteer Vitalii Ivanchuk flew all the way from Sri Lanka where he lived with his Ukrainian girlfriend to help refugees who are coming into Romania.

The 29-year-old IT developer said that many Ukrainians have a tough time communicat­ing with Romanians, and volunteers who can speak both Ukrainian and English are in high demand.

His girlfriend, Anastasiia Haiduk, quit her investment job shortly after the war started and decided to volunteer at the station until the war ends and she can be reunited with her family in Ukraine.

The Romanian government is giving away free train tickets to Ukrainian refugees arriving in Romania that they can use to travel on to Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary Slovakia and Switzerlan­d.

Trofimchuk said she was moved by the warm welcome and the Romanians’ show of solidarity with Ukraine.

“Every Romanian person wants to help. They’re very friendly. And I was shocked about this. I’m so happy that everyone wants to help,” Trofimchuk said.

Nearly 5.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the start of Russia’s war Feb. 24, according to data from the U.N. refugee agency.

Most have entered countries on Ukraine’s western border: more than 3 million people have fled to Poland, while more than 817,000 others have fled to Romania and around 520,000 have crossed into Hungary, UNHCR statistics show.

For some Ukrainian volunteers, their Saturday evening ritual is to join a weekly protest at the Russian Embassy in Bucharest along with other Ukrainian residents and Romanians.

But Trofimchuk skipped a recent protest, saying she expected people to arrive from her hometown.

“I will stay at the station as late as I can because there might be people who need my help,” Trofimchuk said.

 ?? CHISATO TANAKA/AP ?? Elena Trofimchuk, right, who fled Ukraine to Romania more than a month ago, helps a refugee sort out train tickets April 23 at the North Railway Station in Bucharest.
CHISATO TANAKA/AP Elena Trofimchuk, right, who fled Ukraine to Romania more than a month ago, helps a refugee sort out train tickets April 23 at the North Railway Station in Bucharest.

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