A family from La Baie welcomes Ukrainians

MISE À DAY

A Ukrainian couple and their two children arrived in the country on June 14 and have not left their host family since.

In the past few weeks, the Massicotte-Thibeault family grew. It now has 14 people. “It really is a perfect combination between them and us. There was no squabbling. It's really made our family,” testified Mélissa Massicotte Henchy, the host mother.

Apart from the jet lag, the integration is going wonderfully. Newcomers feel at home. “They really fit in. They do the tasks themselves,” she added.

To communicate, the family must be imaginative. They find all kinds of methods to learn French. “Sometimes the applications don't work, so translation is difficult,” explained Massicotte Henchy.

Knowledge sharing is also on the agenda. The two families share their culture. “Yuliia is a chef. She made meals for us: soup, chicken… She makes us taste things that we wouldn't do here,” said the mother. The children also have a lot of fun with each other.

In three weeks, the two families will be moving to Trois-Rivières. It is no longer a question of separating.