A couple who have welcomed refugees from the Ukraine war into their home described their most recent visitors as "very much a part of the family.".
One year after the war's beginning, David and Astrid Frankl of Wimborne, Dorset, who are participants in the government's Homes for Ukraine program, have been discussing it.
In September, Galina, 37, Alex, 16, and Kate, 13, moved in with the couple.
The couple had "sort of become honorary grandparents," according to Mr. Frankl.
Jewish parents of Mr. Frankl sought safety from Nazi Germany in the UK during World War Two.
"They wouldn't have survived if they hadn't come," he said.
"My parents contributed to this nation. I must be grateful to the nation for allowing my parents and me to survive by taking them in. ".
After Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, he claimed that he and his wife wanted to help others in a similar manner.
Prior to this, in May, the Frankl family welcomed Nikolai, his wife Svetlana, and their two children, Polina, 5, and Sofia.
They left Mariupol, Mr. Frankl reported, adding that they narrowly managed to escape before the railway line was destroyed the following day. ".
After staying there for four months, they moved to Cheshire, which is nearer to Nikolai's brother.
Mr. Frankl claimed that although they had not originally intended to adopt a second family, they had changed their minds after reading a seven-page essay Alex had written about his desire to attend school in the UK.
Astrid and I were "just doing our little bit," Mr. Frankl told the BBC.
Galina and her kids, according to him, had "become very much a part of the family" and had learned to appreciate eating meals together.
He said, "They cook one evening, and we cook the next.".
"We had cottage pie last night; they like it a lot. ".
He claimed that the couple and their guests experienced "poignant" feelings on the occasion of the conflict's one-year anniversary.
If the war continued, he added, he and his wife would be willing to host additional families in the future.
He said, "There are still a lot of people who are desperate to leave [Ukraine]."
