Gypsy families have their own rules and peculiarities. Children generally study until 3rd grade. Educating their kids is not always easy The reasons are vary: poverty and dependence on parents, language barrier, lack of transport and roads in the village, and much more. After For 2-3 years of school, children still cannot completely to read and write. And at home they can’t except help. This leads to a long chain of other problems.
A social apartment was organized in the gypsy village. It is home to Claudia, a project manager from Germany. She is currently takes care of four gypsy children who live with her, with parental consent. Little Sabina and Ruslan became the first children who started going to kindergarten who from a gypsy family. This year, Sabina said goodbye to kindergarten. She learned to read and write there. We really hope that from September she will enjoy her school life and she will be able to achieve better results than her older brothers and sisters.
Claudia is fully responsible for all expenses related to the children. Claudia’s help extends to other families in the gypsy village. Many families and even teachers themselves ask for help. Please help us to do good! Helping one of these children will not change the world, but the world will certainly change for that child. Thank you for your help during this uncertain time!
Shamil came to the Children’s Ark quiet, a shy seven-year-old boy who hardly spoke Russian. Shamil did not cry, did not complain, and did not ask to go home, he has a strong character and he learned to survive in a foreign country and among strangers. One can only guess what he felt during this time. He didn’t give up. He learned Russian fast and he easily gets an A on literature for recited poems.
Shamil is well versed in math and solves equations in his mind. In the summer, when his stay ended, his mother took him home. But since she failed to organize and arrange for her son to start school in time and settle the issue with accommodation in Russia, she asked us again to take him back. We are seeing this quite often. We believe that by staying with us, children like Shamil and his mother will be able to receive and already receive the necessary help and support in life. Thank you for supporting and participating in the life of social orphans of the Children’s Ark.
Six years ago, we met with a Gypsy family on a children’s holiday. After getting to know them we learned about the needs of this family. Six months later at they had their 6th child, little Regina, and a year after that her brother Vakhtang was born as well. Lela is a mother of eight children she did not have the opportunity to go to school. She gave birth to her first child at 16, but her birth certificate was only issued at 22 years old, and a passport at 28 years old. Lela has no permanent roof over her head, she has no education, no documents, lives in poor housing conditions, without water, electricity, toilets. Circumstances in gypsy the village just didn’t let her lead a normal life.
We, the volunteers of the Children’s Ark, now we are taking care of this family so that the children have a future. Because of the bad living conditions, Regina and Vakhtang were able to temporarily live with our volunteers. Now we’re going to open the “Children’s Ark” next to a Gypsy village in the Kaluga area. The doors of our house are open around the clock. Since September they can start going to the nursery and even school. We want, that children experience God’s love and care and could live a Christian lifestyle and integrate into society. Parents are very grateful for the help and trust us with their children. By supporting such projects, you become part of God’s plan. Please, pray that these children have a future and hope! Thank you for praying and supporting us.
The life of children in the orphanage is scheduled to the second. They grow up withdrawn and don’t trust anybody. Igor, barely remembers his own parents, because since he is three years old he lived in a correctional orphanage in Krasnoyarsk. Since he stood out from other kids with autism and Down syndrome, he was transferred to the Minusinsk children’s House six months ago. He is 11 years old, but he acts like a little five year old child. He smiles a lot and needs love and special care.
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Yegor is 13 years old. He lived with his biological family,
but his parents abused and beat him and fought between each other a lot. Six
months ago, in front of the boy’s eyes his mother killed his father. She was
sent to prison, and Yegor was sent to an orphanage. Despite what happened, the
boy remains kind and sociable, but very afraid to go to a foster family. He
says that in the orphanage is much better. If his loved ones did this, why wouldn’t
others do that either. His need to re-learn to trust and feel someone’s love
In the near future we want invite children to us in the
“Children’s Ark” and organize events outside. We need a portable audio
equipment. Moreover, to organize children’s leisure, our team needs sport
equipment: game tables (football, bowling, hockey), bicycles and balls. During
winter we need ice skates, since we are planning build a frame for a rink. We
will be grateful for your support our great common ministry. God bless you!
The life story of Viktor Sklanda is about how a wounded
child’s soul became a beacon of hope for other children.
Victor could have a good life. His father bred thoroughbred horses. The family atmosphere was good and friendly. But then his fate changed drastically: his father was killed, his mother became addicted to alcohol and sold the family’s property. As a result, the family has torn apart. For Victor, as one of the youngest children in the family, this meant a new reality in life: an orphanage in the outback of Russia.
This was supposed to be a dark chapter in Victor’s story: “All against all.” Hatred and cruelty shaped his young soul. An environment in which mercy and love were considered weaknesses stifled hope. The picture of the future was predictable – going to nightclubs, drugs, alcohol, possibly crime, and jail. It seemed like it was the sad end of the story. But, Victor’s life took a decisive turn:
Foreign missionaries visited the orphanage. They showed love
to us, even if they were originally punished with meanness for it. Interacting
with these people fascinated Victor and caused the hatred and anger inside him
to diminish. And not only that, but also that he chose a relationship with God
himself. Of course, problems and difficulties did not go away from his life,
but God gave him a new direction in life.
Today, Victor’s heart seeks to show children from
disadvantaged families and children who had to grow up without parents, a view
of life with God and encourage them to let go of their fear of social
connections.
Unfortunately, there are still too many children in
orphanages or shelters in our region who also need our help. One of the bridges
to teens and young people is sports. And this is exactly what we are using now
and want to use even more in the future.
Already, the graduates of the Children’s Ark actively attend
sports events. We plan to start joint work in this direction with the youth and
teenagers of the “EXIT” club. The leader of this project is Viktor
Sklanda.
We rented a gym until June 2021. In addition, we are looking
into renting a place infinitely that will become a meeting place for children
and youth, where it will be possible not only to play football and volleyball,
but also to meet children and make friends.
Do you want to become a sponsor of the “EXIT” project? And for success stories like Victor’s to come true? Maybe someday it is your contribution that will transform the soul of a wounded child into a person who is passionate about helping others. If this affects you, feel free to participate with a one-time or monthly donation.
We learned about the “Open heart Ministry” when we were visiting Kansas City in 2016. And in 2019 we opened our own counseling center. This is God’s way of healing tormented hearts.
Here is a brief testimony from an employee of the Children’s
Ark – Maria Unrau:
“25 years of experience with children orphans helped me understand the depth of pain children experience through betrayal, rejection, and violence. The “Open Heart Ministry” is exactly what we lacked in the upbringing of the children. While I have little experience in counseling, but everything I apply gives positive results. During one of the sessions, the student opened up about all the resentment and pain in relation to her mother who abandoned her she was 10 years old. Being back at the shelter she missed her mother, who was waiting for her and tried to call. Years passed, and she still prayed and believed that her mom would come for her. And then a miracle happened – her mother answered the phone.
The girl heard a familiar voice, which was irritable and rude. Her mother began to scream at the child: “Why are you calling? I’m visiting and I can’t talk to you.” And hung up the phone. The girl burst into tears. After ten years her mother picked up the phone for the first time but they didn’t have a conversation. The pain of rejection tortured a grown-up girl. Healing came during prayer when she forgave her mother. God consoled and healed her wounded heart! This is just the beginning. We still have work in from of us for the rest of her life.
I am grateful to Christ that He called me to be His tool for
His kingdom.
