EACH DAY A NEW CHANCE TO SEE UKRAINE AND KYRGYZSTAN WITHOUT ORPHANS

A COUNTRY OF CONTRASTS ---THE BEAUTY AND THE REALITY OF THE NEEDS







WE HAD A GREAT DAY TODAY.

We went to three major partners today. Stop 1: Soros Foundation to introduce our Kyrgyzstan visitors. While there we talked about a project to help Kyrgyzstan - first starting with another exchange - bringing about 10-12 Kyrgyz to Ukraine to learn from the Ukraine experience - doing this in possibly February and then in March conducting a conference in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan to further the work in diverting children from orphanages. Soros is very interested in this project.

Stop 2: We met with State Social Services Deputy Director and she gave a very thorough overview of the Ukrainian foster care system - its strengths and weaknesses.

Stop 3: We met with the Director of Kiev City Children's Services and had another very thorough overview of what are the strengths and weaknesses of the Ukraine child welfare system. The team was overjoyed with the information they have received and are eager to put into action some of the suggestions and strategies discussed.

Tomorrow - we will take the team to Brovary - a town in the Kiev Oblast that has an integrated social services program - where partnership and collaboration are more than just nice words. We will hear how they have made collaboration a success and learn how they have been successful in keeping children from being placed into orphanages. Brovary places NO children into orphanages!

And then our final stop for tomorrow will be a model program called Sunshine, started by a couple from Switzerland. It is a wonderful program where children are living in a family environment. This home has had great success in the years it has been in existance.

Each day we are just praising God for His Grace and Mercy in allowing us to host these wonderful Kyrgyz professionals. Each day we see one step closer to realizing a KYRGYZSTAN WITHOUT ORPHANS AND A UKRAINE WITHOUT ORPHANS.

Soros Foundation

State Social Services

Kiev City Children's Services

KYRGYZ AND UKRAINE NETWORKING FOR CHILDREN

WHAT A DAY. WE MET WITH TWO OF OUR PARTNERS AND DID WE EVER SEE THE INFORMATION FLOWING IN OUR "RIVER OF KNOWLEDGE!"

Our guests arrived from Kyrgyzstan yesterday without a problem. We have two professionals who work directly with children ensuring the rights of these children are protected. We met early this morning and started our week long learning time with them. First stop - Father's House. Here they met with the founder and president, Roman Korninko. A full presentation was given of how they work with street children, about their rehabilitation program and their family homes. The group even visited a family home and left Father's House amazed with the impact they have had on both children, families and the laws of Ukraine. This was a visit that clearly was just a beginning of the relationship between Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine.

Second stop was lunch at McDonalds for our visitors. Not too educational, but there are NO McDonalds in Krygyzstan - so you might say this was just a cultural experience.

Third stop was to meet with the staff at Every Child - another one of our partners. They presented a top notch information program to help our visitors understand the full spectrum of child welfare where they work as an NGO to keep children out of the orphanages. It was an exciting day and tomorrow will be filled with three stops beside lunch.

We will visit Soros Foundation and discuss a project for the spring, visit state social services and learn about the Ukraine foster care system, and end our visit with Nickolai Kuleba who is director of Kiev City Children Services.

What a day we have planned...stay tuned for only more and more exciting possibilities for the changing of the lives of vulnerable childen.

WORKING UP RIVER BY TEACHING AND TRAINING

A ROOM FULL OF PSYCHOLOGISTS eager to know more and learn more about working with families who adopt children and the children they are adopting. This was an action packed day with activites on disengagement, loss, a child's history and the reason it is important to tell children the truth about their adoption. The day was full of questions, stories and sharing. In addition there were many activites to help participants experience some of the feelings of children who are experiencing the loss of their history.

Perhaps the most important comment of the day was the person who said - "wow, so many things to think about, things I never thought about before." Might we say change occurs one little step at a time. We have always said the work of LAMb is one child and one family at a time - one person at a time! We are not looking for numbers - we are looking for change.

To each of you our supporters - you have made possible the influencing of all these psychologists during the training. Each one of them works with many families and children.

In the pictures you see the presentation of the Field Guide to Child Welfare being presented to the President of the Association of Psychologists. In addition, each person received a full set of the filed guides. Ruby and Lynn packed the sets and delivered them to the thrilled group. Each person also received a copy of the book Telling the Truth to Your Foster and Adopted Child - by Betsy Keefer and Jayne Schooler. You might say this group was just handed "JEWELS" for their future. We trust and pray every book will be the beginning of great things for the children and families these professionals serve.

MERCY FOUNDATION'S TENTH ANNIVERSARY

Last Friday, just before we flew from Kyrgyzstan to Ukraine, Mercy Foundation celebrated their tenth anniversary. The children from many of Mercy's Christian schools came to the gym at the School of Blessing to perform. It was truly an amazing show.
What is truly amazing is what has happened in ten years under the leadership and direction of Elder Yang. Mercy Foundation maintains several Christian schools, a school for the disabled, a resistential facility and a university, IUCA - International University of Central Asia. These schools are all registered with the government and provide a level of education that exceeds much of what is available in the country.
We have had the privilege of working as consultants to Mercy Foundation in concert with M.F.'s president John Tsai and his wife Christa. As their programs continue to impact children in character building and life skills, we have begun to see "hope for the future" radiating from the faces of these children.
It was a benchmark moment to see this celebration and the recognition of Elder Yang as the founder and inspiration for this vision.

SHEPPARDS AT WORK

Two weeks ago, we headed into the mountains of Kyrgyzstan for lunch. We are continually struck by the sharp contrasts in this country. Roads that are lumpy and bumpy, houses that need repair, are all surrounded by the unsurpassed beauty of snow capped mountains.
After only a short drive from the highway, we found a green meadow by a mountain stream. A good place to have lunch nestled in a small valley surrounded by mountains. The only access was a very rutted, twisty gravel road.
During lunch we were treated to sheppards at work, as their flock passed by. It comes as a bit of wake-up call to realize that a very common occupation in this country is being a sheppard. As we travel about here, we continually see sheep, cattle and horses on the roads as they make their way to and from pasture and, by the way, the animals have the right of way. It definitely redefines rush hour.

DAYSPRING IN KYRGYZSTAN IS FOR CHILDREN TO BE HAPPY

The sadness of children breaks our hearts - children who cannot live with their families due to abuse, neglect or abandonment. Yet we pray to bring hope and happiness to the hearts of children who would otherwise be orphans in this country of Kyrgyzstan. This video speaks of the hearts we all have for children who will soon come to our Dayspring home....Let us prepare the best place possible for them. Let us teach and prepare them for families and for adulthood. Let us help them know who they are in Christ and what their special purpose in life is. Join us and dream!

INTERNATIONAL LEADERSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER OF UKRAINE

Her name is Lubov and she is the director of the Brovary City Social Services - an integrated social services program. This program "shines" in how they are working in partnership for the benefit of families. In her city, no children are sent to orphanages!



Every Child leadership - Zanida,Vice Director from Every Child with Sveta the new Program Manager and our team working together to refine a Life Skills program for youth who are leaving the orphanages at 14 years of age. Starting one year before they leave, this will be a comprehensive, training, planning, and mentoring program. It is a BEGINNING of what they might/can do.



The entrance of our office - the reception area - ILDC is a reality. Our office in a central part of the city is a blessing for us. This office is owned by one of our founders and has been rented to us. We use this for space for both offices and for training, as it has a small training room in the center of the offices.


WHAT AN EXCITING TIME IN UKRAINE - the reality of ILDC is more than we could have ever imagined in 2004 when we first started working in Ukraine. At that time, we would show up and do training for those requesting this; working in churches, with Bible colleges, orphanages and workers who were committed to working with children and families.

Today, there is an organiztion, with national staff who are leading the same iniative. They organize training, consult with NGO's, work with leaders and provide services that will equip others to do the work necessary to strengthen families and protect children. This organization was founded by the Institute for Human Services from US, Father's House in Ukraine, CBN (Emmanual) in Ukraine and LAMb International from US/Canada.

Working in partnership and working to ensure quality, competency-based training and consultation is available is the goal of ILDC. The development of the ILDC team, the materials being used and the program model are all from the consultation, tools and resources that have been given by the Insitute for Human Services, based in Ohio. IHS published materials are being used all over Ukraine, most specifically the Field Guide to Child Welfare. IHS staff have traveled numerous times to Ukraine to provide training and consultation to help in the growth of ILDC and the work in the country.

Together with our partner organizations in Ukraine, we are working for a UKRAINE WITHOUT ORPHANS. And we SEE PROGRESS.

Pictured above is Lubov - and they DO NOT SEND CHILDREN TO ORPHANAGES FROM THE BROVARY CITY SERVICES! They are committed to integrated services and keeping children in families. They do some amazing prevention work. She is a model for other cities and much legislation has been changed as a result of the work she does.

Also pictured above is a meeting with ILDC and EVERY CHILD leadership - working with together to clarify and strengthen a LIFE SKILL program for youth who are 14years of age and leaving the orphanages. EVERY CHILD has worked hard to help the different regions understand the need to keep children with families and to be the "gate keepers" from the flow of orphanage placement to a minimum. The success is evident and together we will move closer and closer to a

UKRAINE WITHOUT ORPHANS