EVERY FAMILY - EVERY CHILD - EVERY CHURCH - EVERY PERSON - BY BUILDING THE TEAMS!

WORK WITH ONE?

 OR WORK WITH THOSE WHO WORKS WITH MANY?

TRAINERS WORK WITH MANY

PASTORS WORK WITH MANY

SOCIAL WORKERS WORK WITH MANY

LEADERS WORK WITH MANY

INFLUENCE BY WORKING WITH THOSE 

WHO WORK WITH MANY

Video just over 2 minutes!

TRAINING AS A CATALYST TO CHANGE

BECAUSE 
WE BELIEVE

IN A WORLD WITHOUT ORPHANS!

DISCOVERY PROJECT IS MOVING FORWARD - VERY EXCITING

MOVING FORWARD WITH

DISCOVERY PROJECT

DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICES AND STAFF

LEADERS AT WORKSHOP SHARED THEIR NEEDS AND IDEAS

OLGA PRESENTED A FULL WORKSHOP ON INCLUSION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES INTO SOCIETY

HELEN - FROM UKRAINE - LEADS AN INITIATIVE IN THE SCHOOLS IN UKRAINE AND GAVE HER EXPERIENCE HERE TO THE PARTICIPANTS

Our Discovery Project if off to a great start.  Let us update you on some of the initial activities:

    1.   Larisa and Tanya went to Alaska for training to bring skills and knowledge back to use in the work they are doing working at Iskra and other places.  They will be teaching workers at Iskra and will be visited the Alaska team to view their progress on implementation of the work they are doing.

    2.   We have another person who has applied to go to Hope Alaska – and we have been asked to help in the selection of additional persons to be chosen for their training.  The new applicant was interviewed by our Residential Director – Olga and we will be bringing this person into our programs to work as a volunteer before and after she goes to Alaska.  It was decided she is a good candidate for the experience.  She is an older university student – attending the International University of Central Asia.

    3.   Olga brought together moms who have children who have cerebral palsy – with a certified trainer who teaches therapeutic massage.  This training was done at Dayspring.

    4.   Olga and Costa have had several meetings with different individuals who are working with persons with disabilities and we have a contact where we can offer both computer classes and exercise equipment for use of those with disabilities.

    5.   Olga won a scholarship to go to Budapest for training on Inclusion of the Disabled into Society.

BREAKING NEW DEVELOPMENT

YESTERDAY, JUNE 18, 2013

Our residential director, Olga did a workshop in Mayor's office yesterday for 25 social workers and staff from the child's police department.  She presented issues about inclusion of persons with disabilities into community life.  She discussed what could be done by government and NGO’s working together creating models and pilots that bring ideas and hope to others who can make a difference as well.

Olga shared her experience of learning that she received when she was in Budapest last month. She shared what laws she learned about, how things were done in other countries and gave some suggestions and ideas for consideration.

Olga’s mother is in Kyrgyzstan at this time.  She also shared at this meeting about her work in Ukraine.  She is leading a project in the schools called "THE RIVER OF LOVE" about inclusion of children with disabilities into the area of education.

Olga said that it was interesting that at the end all came to conclusion that our first and most important task is to change the paradigm of thinking, and start teaching younger generation the right things.

Many social workers went to Olga after, thanking her for the workshop.  Many of them work with particular schools, and they told her that it would be good to do such a workshops for the teachers and then for children in the schools as well. 

Discovery Project is moving forward and most  importantly – using the locals to become engaged in changing the present realities to future possibilities!

We are so thankful for Hope Alaska and Eileen Lally for "kickstarting" this very important project!  We are so thankful for this wonderful opportunity to serve those who are often forgotten in the countries in which we serve.

REUNIFICATION - GOAL ATTAINED - ANYA GOES HOME

REUNIFICATION - HOME FOR ANYA

We are pleased to announce this news.  Anya has been reunified.  The road is likely to be difficult for the family and we are not abandoning them as they have their daughter and sons now home.  Anya lived at Dayspring and her brothers were at a local orphanage.  Today - they are home with mom and dad.  

We have delivered bunk beds to help out - giving them more places for the children, we have installed water into the home, helped with some furniture needs and will continue to be a support to the family helping them learn and adjust to having their children back home.

GOOD BYE TO ANYA

6 OF OUR LITTLE GIRLS POSING FOR A GOOD BYE PHOTO

FAMILY RECEIVING ANYA AND BOYS HOME!!!

OLGA WILL STAY INVOLVED WITH FAMILY
WE ARE THERE TO BE A SUPPORT
AND HELP
FOR
SUCCESS

Here is the report from Olga and Costa!  GREAT NEWS...

"15 MONTHS ago Anya Sokolova has entered our Dayspring family. She went to the first grade in school. During the past year ILDC staff and us as parents tried our best to reunite the family, encouraging her mom and dad to not give up and work hard to make it possible for their children to live at home.

Praise God it is finally finished. Social service, mayor’s office and ILDC brought parents and children together. It is such a happy moment. Thank you everyone for investing your prayers, minds and hearts and finances into this little girl and her three brothers who lived outside of their family and now are back home with mama and papa. We believe children must grow in families and we do everything we can to see this happened.

ILDC staff and Konstantin and Olga as Dayspring mom and dad will continue to work closely with Sokolovs family to help them creating and sustaining stability and safety in their home that will prevent negative experience of withdrawing children from their family."

DISCOVERY PROJECT GETS A BOOST....OLGA COMPLETES TRAINING

OLGA COMPLETED TRAINING IN HUNGARY

SHE IS READY TO IMPLEMENT THE NEW LEARNING INTO OUR WORK WITH THE 

DISCOVERY PROJECT 

IN KYRGYZSTAN.

HERE IS THE REPORT FROM OLGA - WHAT AN HONOR FOR HER TO RECEIVE THIS SCHOLARSHIP.....AND A WONDERFUL BOOST TO LAMb PROGRAMS IN KYRGYZSTAN...

I am back home safely and full of ideas.  The study session was very good and informative. So there were 21 participants chosen out of more then 200 applications from different countries.

Our group had people from these countries: Armenia, Georgia, Greece, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Russia, Latvia, Moldova, Kosovo, Estonia, Belgium, and I was the only representative of Kyrgyzstan.

Our group was mixed we had people without disabilities and people with disabilities, but amazingly we were so opened to each other that never felt any difference between us. There was a great respect to facilitators cause for people with disabilities there were all conditions in the European Youth Centre in Budapest.

The topic of the study session was “Social inclusion for active Youth participation”, so mainly about how can we help young people with disabilities to become an active part of the society, how can we as organizations work on mixed abilities approach.

As a trainer I’ve learnt a lot.

I already am thinking about training activities for youth and graduates on Human rights. I also think about visiting the IUCA and talk to the students of social department to see if they can be involved somehow.

I will also try to come up with a plan for Discovery Project, and how can I apply all the knowledge I got in inclusive education.

So I have the certificate from European Youth Centre and Participation for our organization, about taking part in this session. And I think this participation will implement our organizational work a lot.

CONGRATULATIONS OLGA - WE ARE VERY PROUD OF YOU!!!

The rest of the LAMb Team....

APOLOGY

Dear friends,

I want to apologize for the recent post title that was on the blog.  I titled the blog intending to blog about the trauma impact....helping abused youth and not further abusing them though ignoring their trauma.

I walked away from the blog after starting...came back and blogged a different blog, forgetting to change the title.  I did not receive any comments on the situation, but really should have been challenged - as it was quite inappropriate.  The title left with the new blog was VERY wrong!

Again, I apologize.

Ruby

REMINDED ONCE AGAIN....

ANYA IS VISITING WITH CHOLPON...
Making connections...

THEIR STORIES ARE HARD FOR THE HEART

YET THEY ARE THEIR STORIES, THEIR HISTORY. 

WE DON'T SHARE THEM COMPLETELY - IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN SOME PRIVACY FOR THEM.  

YET WE WANT YOU TO KNOW AND LOVE THEM, AS WE DO.

Our 14th child (Anya) has joined us in Kyrgyzstan.  

She is 12 years old and fitting right in.  Our prayer is that we can get her with family soon.  She has been through some very rough times and needs stability, safety and attention to her well-being.  We are blessed to be the helping hand.  We have 14 children in our care from the ages 7-18.  Not all the children have sponsors.  If you would like to sponsor a child, let us know.

LIFE SKILL PROGRAM...HELPING YOUTH PREPARE FOR LIFE...
1.  We are also working with several graduating orphans hoping we can help them find stability upon leaving the orphanage.  Costa has been meeting with them regularly, planning and seeking their desires for their future.

2.  Jeremiah Project is open with lots of activity.  Counseling, group meetings, residential support and VERY SOON, our first apartment for those orphans that are ready to begin the "practicing" of living more interdependently.

3.  AND the Life Skill project in Red River is going GREAT.  Our next step will be to continue to session 2 with this group and start another one at Red River.  We will also start the courses soon at the local Chui Orphanage.

ABOUT SPONSORSHIP...
Sponsorship is $50 per month for each child.  This buys clothing for school, pays for school activities and extra needs, helps with their medical care, dental work, birthday and Christmas gifts as well as extra food in the house.

MORE NEWS....
Today David and Jayne start training with a group here in Kiev.  Then on Wednesday they will start a three day training of content with our top trainers.  All this work for the past many days and these future days are in the area of Trauma.  Many stories have surfaced of how families and workers are given hope and help with this critical information.

David and Jayne will continue on to Poland as will our ILDC staff Oleg and Max.  There, David and Jayne are the key note speakers at a national conference and the on to Warsaw to do training for three days with practitioners.  They will be training Trauma there as well.

NEXT FOR UKRAINE..
We will be continuing with the leadership from the NGO's and Churches that are focused on gaining skills for their work.  Next training for them will be in June - and we will do two groups at this time - starting a new group.  In addition Ruby will be working with the national trainers - taking them to the next step.

We are thrilled to have trainers who are able to carry on with many of the programs we have implemented in Ukraine.  That is the GOAL...NATIONALS DOING THE WORK!!!!  Building sustainable activities that strengthen the country's families and children.  All ensuring we do our part in the movement - UKRAINE WITHOUT ORPHANS!

• June training of leadership and work with trainers
• September training with church families in South Ukraine; working with parents who have adopted and social workers

FINALLY...VIOLENCE IN KYRGYZSTAN SUBSIDING...
It seems at this time the threat of an outbreak of national violence in Kyrgyzstan has subsided.  The issue surfaced around the gold mine in the SouthEast that is owned by a Canadian firm.  Nationals wanted to take it back.  Short version - things seem to be under control at this time.  And we are most thankful.  Kyrgyzstan families have suffered greatly over the last years - 2010 was the violence that left the country devastated with deaths and destruction.