a retired couple turns their daily life upside down and welcomes twelve Ukrainian refugees “as long as it takes”
Yolaine and Jean-Luc Ranson have turned their life plans upside down to welcome Ukrainian refugees into their home. Not one, not two, not three… but twelve. A story of pure deliverance, which will last as long as it takes. A kitty has been created to help them financially.
“We suffered a lot from being helpless”. Sitting in the armchairs of the living room, a few meters from the fireplace, Yolaine and Jean-Luc Ranson give us a few minutes of interview. It is a little after 2 p.m., lunch has just ended. The five children are taking a nap, the big house has regained its calm.
To the question: why embark on such an adventure? The answer from Yolaine, 62, is straightforward. “It was inconceivable not to engage”. At his side, son husband Jean-Luc, also 62, agrees. “To be honest, we didn’t even ask ourselves the question, it was natural”.
Retired for only a few months and settled in this pretty farmhouse with blue shutters for three years, the Ranson couple had planned to live peaceful years while pursuing an activity thanks to the adjoining gîte. But when the war broke out in Ukraine on February 24, both made the decision to welcome their Ukrainian friends home. “Our comfort doesn’t matter. Our little way of life doesn’t matter compared to the bombardments, the fear, being holed up in a cellar, testifies Yolaine Ranson. You don’t have to be selfish.”
From two, they now live together at fourteen. The youngest roommate at 5 months, the oldest at 72 years old. A story of pure generosity.
You have to go back several decades to understand what links Yolaine and Jean-Luc to Ukraine. The day after the Chernobyl nuclear accident, the couple joined the association Nord Pas-de-Calais Chernobyl. His mission ? To permit Ukrainian children to come and spend part of the summer with families in the region and get a change of scenery. In 1992, the Ransons welcomed their first Ukrainian child. They will repeat the operation ten times.
It was in this context that they met Natacha Kzendzuk, thirteen years ago. A teacher in a village in northern Ukraine located a few kilometers from the Belarusian border, she becomes the relay between the host families and the Ukrainian children. Yolaine, Jean-Luc and Natacha become friends and visit each other regularly.
Thursday, February 24, it is 5 a.m. The Russians launch the invasion. The Ranson couple beg Natacha to leave her village. After hesitating, the 54-year-old teacher leaves the province of Zhytomyr with her daughter Valentyna, 32, and Luca, her 5-month-old grandson. Zoriana, Valentyna’s college colleague, takes the same route with her 3-year-old daughter, Arina. The convoy heads with difficulty towards the Polish border. By car at first, the last kilometers are done on foot in the snow, by -8°C.
At the same time, Yolaine and Jean-Luc drive towards Medyka, a Polish town on the border with Ukraine. 1800 kilometers from their village in Pas-de-Calais. “For us, it was natural to go looking for them, to assert today Yolaine Ranson. Because there was death and here was life.” All return to Alette on Sunday 27 February.
A week later, the Ransons welcomed seven more Ukrainian refugees into their home. Cousins of Natasha’s daughter, also from Zhytomyr province.
“We left to protect the children, but we are in Ukraine with our head and our heart”, says Natacha, the grandmother. A choice of reason, she repeats. Now sheltered, the institute thinks of his family, his friends… and his students have stayed there. “I hope Putin will stop this nightmare. My son is at war… I think of him every second.”
Since then, the farm has been completely refurbished to accommodate everyone. Upstairs, the beds are aligned with each other. Shelves had to be built so that everyone could take out the few belongings assembled in a hurry in small suitcases. “All of a sudden, the family grows. We organize ourselves, we live together, we exchangedescribes Jean-Luc. It’s a roof, it’s a house and everyone lives as they want inside.
However, to ensure the smooth running of the cohabitation, a schedule has been activated. “The girls take care of the floor, we take care of the kitchen with Natacha”, explains Yolaine. The menus are studied beforehand. “We are going to make dishes that are not too expensive for us to last over time, because we are going to be confronted with the sinews of war, money”. Pasta, soups, borscht… At mealtime, everyone gathers around the table, the children on the mothers’ knees.
It was also necessary to organize for the showers, the toilets or even the laundry. “We think economically: no tumble dryer, we dry outside as soon as there is a ray of sunshine, we run the machines at night or at midday”. Evidenced by the T-shirts and other habits that hang continuously on the wires installed in the large garden.
Chores on one side, and activities on the other. Since their arrival, Natacha and the Ukrainian nationals have been enjoying the garden and the sun of Pas-de-Calais. As for the children, they have fun on the scales and feed the farm animals. While Arina, 3, feeds the goats, we chat with Zoriana, her mother. She says she does not have words strong enough to thank Yolaine and Jean-Luc. “Here it is calm, and there is a lot of heat, she smiled. I’m relieved to be here with my daughter, away from the bombs. I hope that we will soon be able to welcome the Ranson family back to our home, to give them all the love we have in Ukraine.”
For the birthday of the 3-year-old girl, the Ransons took the whole troop to Berck. Go see the sea – a first for Arina – and change the air for an afternoon. A sacred organization. “I let you do the calculation of the number of cars needed to leave at fourteen”slips us Jean-Luc.
As soon as the first Ukrainian nationals arrived in Alette, Yolaine and Jean-Luc’s daughter got involved with her parents. Sophie Ranson, director of an equestrian center located about ten kilometers from Alette, relayed a message on social networks: “we are appealing for your donation if you would like to donate anything”. Within hours, the post was shared over 500 times. “Do you need a high chair?”asks a user. “I have a stroller for you”, comments another. Clothing, food, sofas, childcare equipment… donations poured in at record speed.
So much so that the Ransons had to put an end to the outpouring of solidarity, less than 48 hours after launching the appeal for the generous. “We are overwhelmed by all the donations and we are forced to stop, they write in a message. The stocks are sufficient for a certain time (…). We can hold out for several months.”
Difficult for Natacha to contain her emotion. “
When we arrived in this house, the whole family of Yolaine and Jean-Luc welcomed us with open arms. They gave us everything: material things of course, but above all all the warmth of their hearts.“.
At the same time, individuals spontaneously come to deposit donations at the family farm. Like this local restaurateur who prepared a couscous for 20 people or this farmer from the neighboring town of Bourthes who brought back several bags full of potatoes. “You know, to feed a family of fourteen, you need a lot to eat, he explains. It’s Madame we have to thank, it’s not us. It’s a small gesture of nothing at all, you know. I hope everything will go well.”
The emotion is great.
The generosity of individuals, but also the solidarity of communities. The mayor of Alette asked the Restos du Coeur and the solidarity grocery stores of Montreuillois. “I also appealed to the prefecture to find out about the aid available. Why not housing aid? Financial aid? I’m expecting news this week”, says Constant Vasseur. The Pas-de-Calais departmental council has undertaken to bring in pediatricians to ensure the medical follow-up of children. The socio-cultural center of Hucqueliers will lend a 9-seater van to the family to make it easier to get around. Gasoline will be financed by the community of communes.
To date, material donations have far exceeded the couple’s expectations. Jean-Luc, Yolaine and their hosts will now want to find their rhythm, in complete privacy. Because everyone knows that the war will last, and that a return to Ukraine is not on the agenda.
A situation that is sometimes difficult to manage for the couple. “They need solid support, so we try to contain ourselves because we mustn’t add emotion to what already exists, confides Jean-Luc. But inevitably, we are very touched”. Yowool tells us that it is sometimes more difficult for her to contain herself “Maternal instinct, surely…”. She tells us about a scene that took place with Natacha shortly after her arrival. “She was with me in the chair, we were talking, it was 11 o’clock in the evening. A plane flew over the house and she had a big panic attack. Quick, we had to go to the cellar. Quick, we had to turn off the lights… And I don’t think it’s going to be evacuated right away”.
Reliving scenes of horror… and fearing for the lives of their loved ones, like their husbands, who remained in Ukraine. “They are always on their phones to hear from their families. “So and so died today”, “there is no more house”, “the school was bombed”, “they razed the kindergarten”, says Yolaine. So yes, there is emotion, yes I crack and I have to crack at times to move forward. I can’t keep it all to myself. That’s how I am human.”
A question now: could the Ransons welcome this tribe in the long term? “We don’t have a deadline, assures Jean-Luc. They still hope to return there and as soon as possible. They can’t settle down, their head is in Ukraine. But we are ready to take on several months, however long it takes.” Yolaine nods. “We are committed to this adventure, we will do it until the end”.
To help them last for several months, a fundraiser has been posted. The money will provide meals, transportation, administrative procedures, care, but also to pay water, gas or electricity bills. A way to make a meager contribution to the daily life of this new adoptive family.