Orphan's Tree Blog

English classes in Ministry Center

Jenya — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:22:13 +0000

Since last October several young people at our Vladimir, Ivanovo and Kostroma Ministry Centers have been taking English classes. When I asked them about their motivation, the first one was “to be able to speak with my American friends”. Natasha L from Kostroma says: “I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to learn English at the Ministry Center. The English lessons unify us in a special way and give us a chance to develop our abilities. Now, in my fourth month of learning, I know enough English to be able to understand some of the things that my American friends tell me. Besides, I can talk to them on my own using some of the words and phrases that I’ve learned so far. Learning English at the MC is not very stressful and I love the fact that we get to learn a little about American culture, traditions and what not. It’s fascinating. The English language itself is not similar to the Russian language and I enjoy learning about its peculiarities. Once again, I want to thank everyone involved for giving us the opportunity to learn and grow!”

So, next time you visit the Ministry Centers, try to speak English to Masha, Natasha, Vitalik and others!

Russian salad

Jenya — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 08:04:15 +0000

What we know here in America as Russian Salad is actually called Olivier (like as in Laurence Olivier) in Russia, after the French chef who created it while living in St. Petersburg during the winter when it was hard to find fresh vegetables. It’s not so hard to cook: just boil some potatoes (3 – 4), carrots (3 -4) and eggs (4) (but definitely not 3). Cut them in small cubes, as well as a green apple and 5 medium-sized pickles. Add green peas (1 can), and some mayonnaise. I also usually add some minced green onions, fresh parsley and cilantro. No Russian party goes without Olivier and loyal to this tradition, Masha and Tolik cooked that famous meal for the Christmas celebration in Vladimir.

An amazing number of young people – 122 – came to celebrate Christmas at the Vladimir Ministry Center on December 27. As the Russian saying goes, there was no room for an apple to fall down. Imagine also playing games, dancing and fun talent contests.

Gifts from Orphan’s Tree were very appreciated by the guys and girls. Most of the older orphans live in technical school dorms and make their own meals, so nice frying pans and towels will be put to a good use.

And I hope you’ll put my Olivier recipe to good use, too!

Happy New Year to you and your families!

S Novym Godom!

Nadezhda (hope) is 15 years old

Jenya — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 19:57:54 +0000

This month we all celebrated 15 years of our ministry in Russia… well, 15 years since we formed Nadezhda (Hope) Fund, and 17 since our first project – a 40-ft long container of brand new shoes that we put on the feet of orphans in many regions of Russia.

Since then you’ve been part of their lives, filling them with hope springing up from roots of support and love in their times of need. Please join us today in celebrating the success of their productive and hopeful lives that you helped them achieve, even lives of serving others.

One of the highlights of my trip to Russia this time was visiting with Kolya who remembers how his friends from the US encouraged him and gave him a vision of a serving life. Today Kolya is helping orphans and children in need in his local community by engaging them in sport activities. Kolya’s day job is in the construction business where he also helps others find jobs. We see more and more young people who grew up in orphanages helping other orphans today.

What can be a better gift for the 15th anniversary than the fullfillment of the original vision God gave us?!?!

The light in their eyes

Jenya — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:36:48 +0000

“Orphans” – said Bill when one of the Ministry Center participants asked him what his favorite thing about Russia was. You should’ve seen the young people’s faces. No, I’m not talking about disbelief; I’m talking about the light of joy that their eyes reflected at this moment. It’s not what they were expecting. They thought Bill would name some food or places but he didn’t even hesitate. It means a lot to know you’re worthy, worthy of love, worthy of a trip to Russia. What can be a better encouragement?

That same September trip Bill’s team also encouraged our staff. They took them out to dinner, shared their appreciation for their dedicated work and did some teaching. Later, one of the staff came up to Bill and said: “I’m going home today a different person than I was when I came to this meeting. You said something in regards to what I’ve been thinking about for a long-long time, and what you said was a revelation to me”. That same night that person came up to me and said this: “I’ve noticed that people who have faith shine from inside. Regardless of how many problems they have in their lives, light shines in their eyes. I want to be such a person too.”

So thank you for bringing light into the lives of the orphans and those who work with them on a daily basis!

Making a difference…

Jenya — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 22:24:04 +0000

I just came back from Russia where I spent three wonderful days at our Vladimir Dacha participating in the camp for older orphans. It’s remarkable to see the impact this program is having in these young people’s lives. I saw them share work and fun, enjoying the fruit of their labor in a safe refuge, bringing their life troubles and joys to their mentor Andrei, and eagerly participating in healthy life activities. These young men and women who come to our program are more likely to stay off the streets and lead a productive lifestyle than those who don’t. During one of the days at the Dacha I found out about two young men in the neighborhood who were found dead from drug overdoses, a poignient reminder of what we’re up against, and how wonderful it is to make a difference.

Another trip highlight was realizing that so many of our young people, inspired by the program, impact the lives of their peers. Christina, a program participant, has been sharing a room with another girl named Natasha. Natasha hasn’t been working for three years, living off renting out a room in her flat. Having too much free time and some free money Natasha engaged in some unhealthy life style choices. Nothing seemed to encourage her to go to work. But since Christina started participating in the Dacha program she has been constantly sharing with Natasha the joy of planting and reaping, the joy of having clean fun through good hard work. Some days Christina would call Natasha on the phone several times and just yell with excitement. It took several months for Natasha to hear Christina. But she finally did. Today Natasha is working. I hope she’ll continue pointing her life in a better direction and receiving the many rewards that work gives us beyond just money.

Bill, Holly, Munro and Beth came to our Dacha camp and taught the young people break the boards. One has to have faith to do it!

Masha is a great cook! That borszh was awesome.

Sharing work and fun…

You will eat the fruit of your labor…

Jenya — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 20:21:05 +0000

… and vegetables

The summer isn’t over yet but look at the fruit our young people have grown at the Vladimir Dacha! It’s so important for all of us, and especially – for orphans, to see the results of our labor. It brings so much reward and satisfaction and it motivates us for trying even harder! As our participants are enjoying the zucchini and pickles they’ve grown I want to thank you all for investing your time, your love and your resources into these young people’s lives. It’s a joy to see them succeed and blessings and prosperity will be yours” (Psalm 128:2)

A Good Holiday to Celebrate…

Jenya — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 20:03:04 +0000

Russians like to celebrate. Between state, local and church holidays, pretty much every day of the year is some kind of a special day. Some are more known in the West, such as International Women’s Day (March 8 ) and The Day of the Defender of Motherland (February 23) but many – even Russians don’t care to remember, such as the Day of Steelworker or the Day of Fisherman. This year one more holiday was added to the list – the Day of Family, Love and Fidelity, celebrated on July 8 – well worth celebrating indeed considering the challenges the institution of marriage has been facing in Russia, not unlike the rest of Western civilization.

In fact, the Russian Orthodox Church has celebrated this day for centuries as it’s directly related to the Russian Saints Peter and Fevronia of Murom (Vladimir Region) whose story goes back to the 13^th century. Though not martyrs, these saints are sometimes called Russian Valentines for their exemplary faithfulness in marriage. If you’re curious enough about their story, you’re welcome to read it here. (Like everything in marriage it will require a lot of patience and perseverance . The legend has it that they died on the same day, July 8 – hence the day for the feast.

For orphans who don’t have any family traditions or even a positive example of family, making their own families is very challenging and the rates of divorce, domestic violence and child abandonment in orphan families is very high. Since 2008 we’ve been running a program of support to Young Families, which includes lots of counseling, material assistance in times of crisis and, of course, fun activities for parents and their children. There are 18 families and 27 kids currently in our program, and we’re proud to say that we’ve seen remarkable results of an effort to be good families, despite their hard circumstances.

Some quotes from these young parents will help you understand why they value being in our program so much :

“In February 2011 we became a family of six after having twin-girls. To tell you the truth, we really count on the support from this program, as life is really hard for us now. The money that my husband Misha makes is far not enough. We are thankful to receive any kind of help. When Misha is at work, I stay at home with the kids alone and I don’t even have anyone I can simply talk to. When the program counselor Tatyana visits me I know I can share everything with her – my sorrows, tears, she would always give me good advice and encourage me”

“I often have a hard time understanding my wife and I may get angry and lose my temper. Then I talk to our social worker and she helps me understand my feelings and gives me valuable advice that helps us in our marriage”

“I’m thankful for the trainings that teach us about our children’s development and parenting skills. My son Artyom had some developmental and behavioral problems. He didn’t know how to play with the other kids, wouldn’t share his toys with them. In the course of one year the program counselor helped him learn to communicate with the other kids and to be good to them. She also gave me a lot of advice how to help Artyom in the future. Soon Artyom started to speak and was ready to go to the kindergarten. I realized that I had made a lot of mistakes in his upbringing. Thanks to the experienced staff I learned to understand my son”

“Being a participant of the Young Families program means a lot to me. I saw a lot of hard times during several years after I left my orphanage. Now I receive regular help and advice through this program on many important life questions, get financial support at difficult times and most importantly I know that I have true friends in this ministry. We have two little kids but this doesn’t stop me from coming to the Ministry Center because there is a kids’ room there and always someone to take care of my children while I attend our meetings, work out in the gym room or see our caseworker”

“We both grew up at the orphanage and have no family life experience. We don’t know how to properly parent our children. We always have many questions how to take good care of the kids, how to be good spouses. We’re deeply thankful for this program”.

And I’m deeply thankful to all of you who help us support this program and help families of Russian orphans grow stronger.

Ah, there’s nothing like a good reason to celebrate! Sometimes, though, there are little things that when considered more closely, amount to much deeper reasons to celebrate, for they are nothing less than small steps on the way to a better future with many, many more reasons to pause and appreciate what true love, patience, faithfulness, and perseverence can bring.

Happy Day of Family, Love and Fidelity, my friends, and you, too, Peter and Fevronia of Murom!

What we know about orphans…

Jenya — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 00:28:06 +0000

There is very little official information available about orphans’ needs and the scope of their problems. In general, getting accurate and complete statistics on social issues in Russia is a challenging endeavor, and the statistics on orphans seems to be especially incomplete, confusing and outdated.

That is why I was so excited to see the first extensive statistical research on Youth in Russia, recently published by the Russian Federal Statistics Bureau: New Research. Though it still doesn’t contain information specific to orphans, it’s nonetheless a great step towards understanding Russian youth in general. The authors of the research admitted that this was the first attempt to collect such data and that it made them realize how little they knew about Russian youth. Some of the numbers point to positive changes, such as some decrease in use of drugs and alcohol, and the number of HIV-positive among young people between 15 and 29 years old. Other numbers cause serious concern about suicide, abortions by young women (15-17 years old) and divorce among young people. The Russian officials are also concerned about the rate of crime committed by young people and rate of violence towards children.

Good or bad, the more accurate statistics does help us see where acute needs are but what really motivates us in our work is the personal story of every young person we know.

Where will orphans live?

Jenya — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 22:27:26 +0000

When orphans leave orphanages, most of them go to technical schools where they stay in dormitories for 2 – 3 years. Well, that’s not too different from our youth in the U.S. But what happens later, after they’ve graduated from these technical schools? It would be a rare exception for an orphan to get a job after tech school that would actually pay the rent. In fact, I hardly know anyone who has been that lucky. A lot of graduates face the dreaded but inevitable return to their “families”. After all the abuse they suffered there which resulted in them being placed in an orphanage in the first place they return to these same families that, as a rule, continue living the same destructive life styles. But for many it’s the only alternative. Some, those who don’t have anywhere to go, may get very lucky and receive a free apartment from the government. This civil effort began a few years ago and has already provided a lot of young people with free housing. In 2008 the combined contribution of federal and local governments of almost 5 million dollars bought 113 apartments for orphans in the Vladimir region alone (Source: http://www.rg.ru/2009/01/27/siroty.html). In 2010, 97 apartments were given to the Vladimir region orphans by the state (Source: http://www.tatar-inform.ru/news/2011/03/30/263744/). However, impressive as this is, it only helps a small portion of those who need housing. In Vladimir region over 20 thousand people are still on the housing waiting list, many of them are orphans.

Free housing alone, however, doesn’t end the problem. Due to a lack of important life skills, many older orphans fall prey to swindlers and become homeless (see the blog entry from June 1). These young people without examples don’t know how to pay the utilities or how to make an apartment a safe home, and often we hear stories of orphans renting their apartments out to allow them not to work, leading to involvement in drugs and crime. That alone makes our Life Skills seminars in Ministry Centers so valuable!

And yet, the story doesn’t end there. Among the young people we work with in Russia there are many who, due to various circumstances, will not receive free apartments and continue to live in horrible conditions. Recently we met with Luda who missed her chance of getting a new flat because of a small bureaucratic mistake and is threatened with eviction from a small dormitory room, filled with mold and humidity. I’m not sure which is worse, to stay or to go!

For so many orphans, housing remains a number one priority in life. That’s why Orphan’s Tree is planning to launch a new program, Homes₄Orphans which will help the young people in need with the repairing and furnishing of their apartments and houses, old or new, and teach them to properly care for them and pay their bills. It’s just one more way to show them our love that comes from our Heavenly Father.

You know what they were feeling

Jenya — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 03:12:35 +0000

A couple months ago our two volunteers Audrey and Halee led JA (Junior Achievement) seminars in the Kostroma Ministry Center and one of the assignments was a service project. After inquiring about local needs, the seminar participants decided to make cloth diapers for abandoned babies. Last week they finished making the diapers and brought them to the maternity hospital where these babies stay before being transferred to baby orphanages. As I look at this picture I can only imagine what these women were feeling at that special moment. Two work every day to care for abandoned babies with uncertain futures. Two know exactly how that future has and can be changed. What a moment, made possible by people like you, who shared that they might grow and share alike.