Happiness is a safe, own home in Peltosaari

Sinulle riksulainen is a series of stories in which people from Riihimäki share their thoughts about their hometown.  

“Riihimäki welcomed us during the most difficult time of our lives and gave us security. It gave us the opportunity to start over: to study, find a job and believe in the future. Valuable things in Riihimäki are the proximity to nature, the ease of everyday life, the humanity of the people and the genuine feeling of home.”

This is how Olha Sahan beautifully commented on the Riihimäen Kotikulma Facebook page's question about why the city is a good place to live.

When Olha Sahan, Dmytro Zubenko, daughter Liza, and their two cats arrived in Riihimäki from Ukraine in July 2022, they shared an apartment with another family for a year.

“We were really happy with the electricity, heat and water,” Olha recalls.

Finnish flavors in the kitchen

Home in Peltosaari is very important to them, as they say they are very much homely people. Dmytro laughs that his favorite hobby is lying on the couch. Olha loves her kitchen, where she cooks Ukrainian dishes, such as borscht and syrniki, or curd pancakes.

"I have also adopted a lot from Finnish cuisine. Pea soup, fish soup and Christmas ham are really delicious," Olha praises.

The interior of the home has not been designed to have the feel of a Ukrainian home, as that would feel too painful. Olha notes that the biggest similarity is the balcony.

“Both in Ukraine and here in Peltosaari, I have a lot of flowers on my balcony. Taking care of them makes me happy. My friends brought me a big metal flower stand from Ukraine for my balcony.”

On Saturdays, go to the sauna.

Both praise Riihimäki's peacefulness and small size. It reminds them of their hometown of Balakliya in the Kharkiv region.

“We really like the sauna and we have sauna time on Saturdays. We also like the Finnish barbecue culture, where there are cool places to eat, for example at the wonderful Lempivaara barbecue place. We go there often.”

The family loves forests and nature. Their favorite places include the Vahteristo Nature Reserve, Azalea Park, Riutta Forest, Hatlamminsuo and Bad Segerberg Park in Peltosaari, close to home.

“As a volunteer, we painted the dirty railings of the bridge over the pond with a couple of friends. The city provided the paint. The place is beautiful, especially in the summer, and it’s important to us.”

A steady job brings peace to life

Both have permanent jobs and therefore the right to be in Finland for work, not temporary protection. Dmytro works at a Würth warehouse. Olha got a job at Hyria after completing vocational training in cleaning and property services.

“I wanted to get into this field because cleaning calms my mind. It has order, rhythm, and a solid sense of control, which are important after everything we’ve been through. It feels easier to breathe when I go to work. We have four-year work permits.”

Olha always has the morning shift, while Dmytro works the morning and evening shifts for a week at a time. He always speaks Finnish with his colleagues at work. Liza has completed comprehensive school and is now studying in a Tuva class that prepares her for further studies and is planning to apply for vocational studies at Hyria.

“Adjustment has not been easy for Liza. Only now has she started to feel more confident, and she has that lightness that every young person should have. I am always happy when she laughs. Luckily, she is creative, she sews, draws and makes clay works,” Olha says.

Important cats

The family came to Riihimäki with their two cats, and now the family has a third cat. It was found under a car in a parking lot. After asking for advice in a local Facebook group, Olha took it to the animal protection center Onnentassu. The kitten could not be found. Luckily, Olha was able to redeem it for them a month and a half later.

Olha, Dmytro and Liza live a peaceful life. They go to the swimming pool together and sometimes have sushi or pizza. The family usually travels together, although they have friends. They call their relatives in Ukraine every day.

"But in four years I've only made three video calls because seeing reality feels difficult and would shatter my fragile peace of mind. We also follow the news all the time, and we almost sleep with it," Olha says.

A dream of an end to war

Olha hopes to stay in Riihimäki with her family because she likes the order and people of Finnish society. At the same time, she has not stopped loving her homeland, Ukraine.

“There is an open wound in my heart from homesickness. We have one dream: that the war would end. For ourselves, we wish for stability: that we could live, work, be useful to society and enjoy life.”

_ _ _

Ukrainians in Riihimäki

• The city's integration manager, Juha Hiltunen, says that around 650 Ukrainians live in Riksuu, of which around 200 are children. This is a large Ukrainian community in Finland relative to the population.
• The reception center was closed in the fall of 2025, so all Ukrainians in Riihimäki are now residents of the municipality.
• About 35% of working-age Ukrainians have found a job. A year ago it was close to 50%, but now the bad economic situation is also affecting them.
• Many have started studying. There are more than ten in nursing and logistics studies. The first Ukrainian high school graduate graduated before Christmas 2025. He attended upper secondary school in Riihimäki.
• The biggest challenge is the residence permit situation. Temporary protection for Ukrainians in the EU will end in March 2027. This affects the mood, as there is no information about what will happen next. Many are desperately looking for jobs and study places so that they can change their residence permit to work-based or study-based.
• Finnish courses are organized all the time. The civic college has five courses at different levels. About 80 students study there. There are also free-form speaking Finnish groups.

Text: Reija Ypyä