On February 6, Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, celebrates her birthday. The wife of the Ukrainian president turned 46 years old.
Olena Kiyashko (maiden name) was born on February 6, 1978, in Kryvyi Rih. She graduated with honors from the Kryvyi Rih Technical University construction faculty, specializing in architecture. Mother of two children and support of her husband from the very beginning of his career.
As soon as Volodymyr Zelensky started his career as a showman, Elena helped him write jokes for performances. Then he became a scriptwriter for the “Kvartal 95” team. Also, she now writes for the “Women’s Quarter” project. Until the elections in 2019, Elena was not a public face.
On May 20, 2019, Zelenska became the youngest First Lady in the history of Ukraine. Subsequently, she appeared on the cover of the Ukrainian edition of Vogue magazine. In an interview with the magazine, she talked about her first initiative – nutrition reform in Ukrainian schools.
On Olena Zelenska’s initiative, the reform of the school catering system started with a new school menu, which was developed by chef Eugene Klopotenko. The reform has a complex task: improving the quality and nutritional content of dishes and food safety to resource provision of schools. The updated school menu has 160 items: traditional Ukrainian and popular dishes from different cuisines worldwide.
In June 2020, Olena Zelenska launched an initiative to spread the Ukrainian language in the world and introduce Ukrainian-language audio guides in the most iconic places, in particular, in the world’s largest museums. As part of the initiative, 11 audio guides in Ukrainian were launched in museums in more than five countries.
Today, Olena is actively involved in activities for the country’s benefit, speaking at congresses and meetings, creating various initiatives, and cooperating with foreign figures.
It should also be noted that Olena Zelenska is considered a style icon. At meetings, you can see her images from Ukrainian brands. Predominantly, it is a classic and casual style.
