YouLEAD 2023: Meet our Students from Poltava and Dnipro, Ukraine
With YouLEAD 2023 less than two weeks away, we’d like to introduce you to our 2023 participants from the cities of Poltava and Dnipro in Ukraine.
Poltava is a beautiful city in the center of Ukraine with many parks, museums, and well-known architectural sites. Dnipro sits in the east of Ukraine and serves as the country’s fourth largest city and an important industrial and cultural center. Dnpiro has been in the news this week due to the terrible bombing of a residential building by Russia.
We would also like to introduce you to one special 2023 YouLEADer who will be joining us from Poland.
In their own words, our 2023 students talk about what they love about their cities, a little about themselves and what they are most excited about with YouLEAD fast approaching.
Let’s meet our 2023 YouLEAD students from Poltava and Dnipro…
Maksym Kulynych
Poltava, Ukraine
My name is Maksym, and I live in Poltava. I'm an ambitious and dreaming person. I am communicative and goal-achieving. I like various music genres and various composers. I also like going outside and riding on my bicycle, but sometimes I enjoy just sitting indoors and doing some things, like soldering until 11 PM…or until I break something and get tired…
I like Poltava for its outstanding personality, nature, landscapes, parks, clean air, and blue skies. I also love the Vorskla river and the city’s architecture. I learned about YouLEAD 2023 from friends and decided to join.
I am participating in YouLEAD 2023 because I want to discover a distant country and experience a different lifestyle. I also want to introduce my country to people abroad and improve its reputation. Also, I want to improve my leadership skills.
Mariia Severyn
Poltava, Ukraine
My name is Masha. I’m 14 years old. I live in Poltava, Ukraine. When I was small, I began going dancing, this is my passion. I love flowers, so I have a small collection of succulents and cactuses. I am very friendly, and I am very easy-going, so I get on well with people.
As I want to be a citizen of the world, I want to learn about the traditions and culture of the USA, and I want to share about culture and traditions in my country. It is important for me to give true information about what is going on in my country. That’s why I want to offer to organize a workshop of creating amulets (lialka-motanka) for a true Ukrainian experience.
I live in the charming city of Poltava. This is a cozy city that has been repeatedly mentioned throughout history. Poltava is famous for the cuisine and additionally was the birthplace of many prominent Ukrainians. This is a quiet, cozy city, known for the friendliness of its people. Poltava is a city of happy people!
As a member of the school parliament, I first met with representatives of the VO Klas NGO at school. Representatives of this civic organization conducted training for us. It was from them that I learned about the existence of the YouLead program.
Yana Hordiienko
Pyriatyn, Poltava Region
I'm 16, I am from Pyriatyn. I'm an active girl and I like communicating with people so much. In people I appreciate sincerity - it’s very important to me. I am the president of student government and a member of the Youth Council. I am inspired by my results. When I see that my work was not in vain and I changed something for the better, I feel happy. I also work as a children's animator, and I really love it.
I live in the city of Pyryatyn, in the Poltava region. This is a small town with a population of only 15,000 people. There are no cool shopping centers, restaurants, or cinemas like in all big cities, but it is quite beautiful and especially cozy. I love this city precisely for its people and for its warm atmosphere. Here everyone knows each other and in any case they show their incredible solidarity. And so it happened with the beginning of the full going on war. We have opened a volunteer center, where hundreds of people from Pyratyn arrived on the very first day. Together with them, I wove camouflage nets and sorted all the clothes worn by the residents.
Then, together with the Youth Council, of which I have been a member for 3 years, we got to know the NGO "KLAS" and began to cooperate. We distributed humanitarian aid for IDPs provided by this organization. Later, I got acquainted with their other projects.
In general, its mission is to create a favorable environment for learning and development of children and adolescents, providing pedagogical, psychological and social support, development of life and social skills.
This organization helps children and their parents to establish understanding, create a harmonious environment, helps teenagers with the realization of their goals, and for IDPs provides psychological help and confidence that they are not alone.
I found out about YouLEAD when my mentor (the head of the group I attended) sent me a link to a form to register for participation in the selection. The first thing I said to her was "I'm not going to register, I'm afraid", and she replied "Well, you should be afraid, and when you have time, fill out the form". And so it happened: the fear disappeared immediately at the moment when I sent the application for participation. And I am infinitely glad that I dared!
Kseniia Viazovska
Poltava, Ukraine
My name is Ksenia. I'm 14 years old. I live in Poltava. I am a kind, friendly, cheerful, caring person. I am keen on aerial silks. I like reading books, going out with friends, and learning foreign languages in my free time. I am a member of the school volunteer squad. Together with like-minded people, we carry out various actions in which we collect assistance for homeless animals, in support of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and internally displaced people.
I like Poltava because it is a cozy, spiritual capital of Ukraine and the residents are always friendly here. I also like the city center. I like "Go Vo Klas" because of interesting meetings with psychologists. They are happy to meet, support, and help people.
Yaroslav Husak
Pyriatyn, Poltava Region
My name is Yaroslav, I am 16 years old. I live in the city of Pyriatyn, in the Poltava region. I am cheerful, sociable, and friendly. 6 years ago, I started going to a group where I was engaged in programming and robotics. I have repeatedly won first place at competitions in Ukraine with my projects. In my free time, I like to play on the computer, watch anime and movies (my favorite movie is The Gentlemen). I also often go out for a walk with my friends on a scooter.
I love Pyryatyn because my parents, closest relatives, and friends live here. My city is neat, comfortable, blooming, and green. We have a very beautiful island of Masalsky, where you can spend time in nature and swim in the Udai River and in addition, have a good time in the forest park.
I learned about the YouLEAD organization from acquaintances and friends. Reviews about the organization are positive, where people are helped.
Illia Dovhal
Kharkiv, Ukraine
I’m 15 years old and I'm usually a guy who is trying to find myself. I try to learn something new every day. Right now, I am learning programming. I want to participate in YouLEAD because I want to visit a new country and learn about American culture. I also consider this trip a unique experience to improve my leadership qualities, and to gain experience and knowledge in a democratic society.
Kseniya Stazilova
Dnipro, Ukraine
My name is Ksyusha, I'm 16 years old. I have many hobbies-I read books and manga, listen to music (all types of rock and virtual singers), compose flower arrangements, write short stories, and draw little illustrations for them. In the summer I make dandelion wreaths. I love animals very much and have a wonderful cat. I like spending time with my friends and playing board games with them. I dream of learning how to play volleyball well and participate in competitions.
I live in the best city in Ukraine - Dnipro! I love my city for absolutely everything. It has a long, rich, and interesting history that will captivate everyone. And basically, you learn it in architecture and painting, which I really like. Also, there are a lot of cheerful and smiling people here. It is very pleasant to walk the streets and feel positive emotions around me. And, of course, a lot of memories are associated with this city. Here are all my friends and close acquaintances who make this city much more comfortable and better!
Kira Sukhoboichenko
Warsaw, Poland
I’m from Crimea, Ukraine, but since 2014 I’ve been living in Warsaw, Poland. What I love about the city where I live is that I can develop myself. Warsaw is a place that at every turn gives me the opportunity to meet new people, go to developing events, or organize my stuff. I have friends, family and a boyfriend here who support me - it's wonderful.
I’ve been socially active since I was 10 years old, and since 2018 I have my foundation Flying Bag. We have two directions - helping Ukraine in general (charity collections, humanitarian aid) with an emphasis on helping Ukrainian youth - integration and adaptation center, organizing outings for them, volunteering. I have spoken at TEDx Kids, I have been featured in Forbes Women as a "LinkedIn Champion" twice, I’m a Laureate of the "LEADER AMONG LEADERS" award given by the Leadership LAB project at SWPS University. I love public speaking, meeting new people, listening to music, and helping people!
We’ll be continuing to introduce YouLEAD 2023 participants by region in the coming weeks. Stay tuned to meet more of these incredible young leaders-to-be!
About YouLEAD
The YouLEAD program has been building better leaders in Minnesota, USA, and Ukraine for over 10 years. The sister city relationship between Hopkins, MN, and Boryspil, was inspired by this work. Today, many of our YouLEAD alumni are currently leaders of grassroots organizations, NGOs, and other community organizations currently providing aid and fighting for a free, democratic, and peaceful Ukraine.
Learn more and donate here: https://www.globalsynergygroup.org/youth-leadership-exchange-youlead-2023
