Ukrainian student performs “thank you” concert before 2nd Thanksgiving away from home
By JOE BRANDT, ADAM FOX
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PHILADELPHIA (KYW) — A high school student forced to leave Ukraine during the war shared his personal story in a special Thanksgiving musical salute.
David Kozyrkov, 17, performed for his teachers and fellow students to say thank you as he prepares for his second Thanksgiving in the U.S.
Kozyrkov is a student at the Philadelphia Performing Arts: A String Theory Charter School.
On Monday, David played piano and sang songs to a crowd there. He performed Ukrainian Christmas carols and spoke about fleeing Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine at age 15.
“I’m just only one guy from Mariupol, small town,” Kozyrkov said. “I wake up and I see Russian bombs fly at my house. I didn’t have nothing in Ukraine, I lost my friends…my home.”
He didn’t even speak English when he first arrived in the U.S.
The United Nations says over 6.2 million refugees from Ukraine have been recorded worldwide and another 3.6 million people are displaced within the country.
Kozyrkov was connected with the school through his church and credits the school’s Dr. Jack Carr with helping him get a piano to play at home.
“All these people here are really kind to me, are really good for me,” Kozyrkov said. “I have a lot of friends and that’s really helped me.”
“i want to say thank you,” David told the crowd, adding: “I really love you all.”
David lives with his mother and sister in the city.
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