The Highs and the Lows

This past week was a little quieter but we were still busy with all of the needs here.
Monday I tagged along with our friends from Lamb International to the Kemin Senior’s
Home where Ruby prepared a great meal for the residents. The residents also sang and
recited poems for us and we in return sang some songs to entertain them. It was a great
time of fellowship. Ruby and Lynn’s daughter Kim and husband Randy also brought
along a donation of new slippers and socks. We also delivered some donated clothing
from Sergey and Anya’s charity Lepta Plus.

The clothing and the other deliveries here as well as mentioned in previous blog entries are all part of a container of goods donated to Lepta Plus by some great people in Norway. They donated
clothing, furniture, toys, food, bath products, wheelchairs, walkers and many other things that will be put to good use here. Later on in the week we delivered and assembled two hospital baby beds and clothes from the container. One bed went to Tokmok Baby Hospital and one to Orlovka Orphanage with some clothes, and more clothes went to Red River Orphanage.

After we assembled the bed for the baby hospital the director brought in a baby boy for
us to meet and laid him in it. This baby was abandoned at a bus stop and was brought to
hospital by police. He was given the name of Almaz and he was likely abandoned
because he has 2 club feet. Right now documents are being prepared for him and
then he will be transferred to Tokmok Baby Orphanage. We are also looking into the
possibility of getting surgery sponsored for his feet through the Operations CAN be Done
programme. Almaz is going have a long road ahead of him.

After we left Almaz we went to Orlovka Orphanage with the other bed, the clothes
and some food that we bought along the way. After we delivered these things we spent
the rest of the afternoon with the kids. Orlovka is special to many of us since we first
visited in 2007 and there have been many great changes there since. This was the best
part of the week I think.

This week shows how this adventure can be heartbreaking and awesome at the same
time. On the Act of Kindness blog they posted someone’s Facebook status: “If
you have never wept over your calling…it’s a career!” To read more go to http://
actofkindness.blogspot.com/2012/04/more-then-career.html That pretty much sums up
our feelings here in Kyrgyzstan. But through the highs and the lows we are not giving up
anytime soon.

If anyone wishes to help with my ongoing support or to help out with our programmes
please check out the donation link for LinK 127 at the right side of this blog. You can
donate on line or find the mailing address under the “Details and Contact info” tab to
send a cheque. When donating please include a note to specify where you may like your
donation to be directed to.

Thank you for seeing my heart. Till next time…Я люблю тебя!

First customer in the new bed

Donations for Orlovka

Sergey sharing the story of April 8th

This is All So Very Humbling

Since I arrived in Kyrgyzstan it has been a whirlwind of activity.  There is sooo much work here to do that it’s hard to fathom.  The other day was one of the most…well humbling is the only word I can think of.  We started off the day by going to the Bazaar to buy bags of flour and apples which we took to the people at the dump.  The dump is where people go to dumpster dive but on a much larger scale, as Lynn and Ruby’s daughter Kim put it.  They scavenge for food or anything they can make money from.   I even saw a kid bring his cow to the dump to graze off of anything that could be found. 

When we pulled up to the dump people started coming around the van.  One lady came up to John with huge tears crying that she hadn’t had food in several days.  We then opened up the back doors to reveal the flour and apples which we handed out to some VERY grateful people.  We also entertained them with a few songs to lift their spirits and the lady who was crying was now dancing to our music.  Her tears were changed to tears of joy for a 20 Lb bag of flour and about 3 Lbs of apples.

After passing out the flour and apples our next stop was to a village where several years ago John and his team brought a water line to as there was no water source at that time for the village.  They were able to run the line from another area and set up a community tap so the people wouldn’t have to haul water very far.  John was telling me that this village is made up of different ethnicities, Russian, Kyrgyz and Dungan, and that the neighbours were always arguing with each other.  All of this changed when they got the villagers together around a table for a meal and then bringing in the water which was the answer to prayers. 

When we pulled into the village we saw a line up of farmers filling their tanks to take to the fields nearby for fertilizing.  It was a tangible example of how this water line has dramatically changed the lives of these villagers.  The better water source not only provides water for their households but also helps to grow better crops, which means more food and more income for villagers.  We could also see where some people had made new additions to their homes.  Speaking of additions, John also mentioned that in the year after the water line was installed there were a lot of babies born in the village that they now refer to as the water babies.

The people in the village are still so grateful to John that every time he visits they put on a celebration meal.  Two little girls also came through the crowd and presented him with a bouquet of flowers.  Tables were set up in the middle of the road and we had an amazing meal of plov, which is the national dish of Kyrgyzstan, and enough food to feed at least one army.  It was amazing seeing the joy and the gratefulness of the villagers and how well they are getting along.  All of this from getting around a table and putting their differences behind them and then running a simple water line into their village.

The dump and this village are but just two drops in a very large bucket of the needs here in Kyrgyzstan.  It all can be very overwhelming but I like how Lynn and Ruby put it with their slogan for Lamb International – “just stop for the one in front of you.” 

Don’t forget to check out the blogs for Act of Kindness and Lamb International to see more of what we’re all up to here.  Both links are at the right side of this blog.  Till next time…Я люблю тебя!

Buying the flour and apples

Passing them out at the dump

Farmers lined up for water

We’re Still Busy

Another week and a half has passed by at the blink of an eye.  We have been enjoying some beautiful spring weather here in Tokmok (almost summer weather by Atlantic Canadian standards) with the temperatures in the 70’s during the day.  The cherry and apricot blossoms are out, the planting is well underway and things are getting green.  Spring is an amazing time to be in Kyrgyzstan.

This past week and a half was another busy one.  We sorted, packed and delivered donations to the senior’s home in Kemin twice, which is about 30 KM away from Tokmok, made 2 trips to Bishkek for appointments and made a trip to the men’s disabled home in Iskra to visit and deliver a donation.  We delivered food to the people at the dump which was a very humbling experience.  We attended a concert to celebrate April 8^th at the school where Sergey and Anya’s kids go.  All of the kids did an amazing job with a presentation about the history of that day.  We also made a 5 hour trip (each way) to the orphanage in the resort town of Karokol in Issyk-Kol’skaya Oblast to visit and deliver donations and we planted the garden at the Dayspring house. 

Just a bit more about where I am living for those of you not familiar with Kyrgyzstan.  An oblast is the same thing as a province and Kyrgyzstan has six oblasts.  Tokmok is in the Chuy (pronounced chewy) Valley in the Chuskaya Oblast in the northern part of Kyrgyzstan.  We are also just a couple of miles from the border of Kazakhstan which I can see from my balcony.  In fact, when we drive to Bishkek on the new highway we go through about a mile of Kazakhstan on the way.

On Wednesday (April 4^th) I finally got to meet John and Julie Wright whose blog I have been following for 5 years now.  It is the Act of Kindness link on the right side of this blog.  I have been in touch with them for almost all of that time and it was great to finally meet them in person.  I met their daughters Emma and Bekah last week as they were already here.  The Wrights have accomplished some amazing things here in Kyrgyzstan over the years and it has been amazing to see in person these things and to meet the people they have written about in their blog and hear their version.

I was also able to finally meet Lynn and Ruby Johnson and David Schooler of Lamb International who also arrived last week.  They too have accomplished many great things here over the years.  I will be tagging along with them and the Wrights as they continue their work and helping out wherever I can.  Keep an eye on the Wright’s blog and the blog for Lamb International to see more of what we’re all up to http://lambinternational.blogspot.com  (There are postings on both blogs now with photos.)  Among the plans is to install a playground next week after a team from Barrie arrives.

Speaking of Dayspring, I mentioned a little girl there waiting for heart surgery in my last blog posting.  Her name is Dasha and she has 2 holes in her heart which has also affected the health in her other organs and she gets sick very easily.  In early March she was admitted to hospital for her operation after being on a waiting list, but she had a cold they could not do the surgery.  She has now been cleared and was to be readmitted to hospital April 9^th but due to a machinery malfunction she will have to wait again.  We hope that she will be readmitted next week.  Once in hospital she will be there about 10 days before the surgery to be prepared for it.  Please remember her in your thoughts.  I’ll keep you posted of her progress and my other adventures here. 

If you wish to help out with our programmes for LinK 127 and Operations CAN be Done just click the donation link on the right side of this blog to donate on line or click the link and then click the Details and Contact info tab for the snail mail address to send a cheque.  Again, thank you for your kind thoughts, your continued support and for seeing my heart.  Till next time…Я люблю тебя!

Getting donations ready for the Kemin Senior's home

Donations delivered to the orphanage at Karokol

A sample of the spring blossoms

Lynn & Ruby Johnston of Lamb International.  Their portrait behind them was painted by a resident of the men's disabled home in Iskra.

The Iskra disabled men's home...a big step up from Burie Ooglie in Ukraine

Planting the garden at the Dayspring House

Food delivery to the people at the dump

Kyrgyzstan Week 1

Well I finally had a chance to sit down and write this entry.  I arrived in Bishkek 3 AM on Sunday morning (March 25^th) and have not stopped since I got here.  For those unfamiliar with Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan is about the size of Massachusetts with a population of between 5 and 6 million people.  A little over one million are in Bishkek which is the capital city.  I’ll be living in Tokmok which is around 60 KM from Bishkek, about the same distance from Halifax to Truro.  My friend Sergey Bajenov and his kids met me at the airport and brought me home to Tokmok where I have been incredibly blessed with another nice apartment – aside from the typical poorly designed and aging Soviet plumbing and heating systems.  After getting to the apartment for about 4 hours sleep and a shower it was off to the club for weekly meeting. 

I have been tagging along with Sergey and helping out wherever I can.  He and Anya are very busy people with their work here as well as with their 2 boys, Vladik and Artur, and their 4 adopted children Eye-ziz, Koomunshai, Allenbek and Aisaloo.  (I have no idea how to spell their names but this is how they sound.)  The kids are on break from school this week which is the same as March Break in Canada.  Sergey and Anya’s kids are an amazing and well rounded bunch of kids and the nicest I have met anywhere. 

Since I got here we have made the rounds to the Bazaar for shopping, stopped in on the mother of a friend in Ukraine to deliver a parcel from him.  We sorted, packed and delivered donations to the baby hospital and Red River Orphanage, visited Orlovka Orphanage where an actor friend of Anya’s put on a workshop for International Theatre Day and we stopped in to see Ascel who I met in 2007 on my first trip here.

Ascel and her husband Talent now run a group home called Dayspring which is a (very successful) pilot project for an alternative to orphanages in Kyrgyzstan.  They can accommodate up to 10 children giving them a family environment to grow up in.  It’s kind of like a large foster home.  Currently a little girl living there is waiting for heart surgery which is being sponsored through our programme Operations CAN be Done.  (More on that in the future.)

It is so nice being here renewing old friendships and making new friends.  It’s also nice driving everywhere with the views of the most spectacular mountains anywhere (and yes I have driven through the Rockies – as nice as they are they just don’t compare for beauty).  I don’t know what it is but seeing those mountains is very comforting.  I am going to try and make every minute count for the next 3 months until I return to Ukraine. 

So stay tuned for my updates.  I don’t know how frequent they will be as there are periodic internet “issues” with blog sites not working and a team is arriving soon from Canada when the busyness will increase. 

Thank you for your kind thoughts, your support and for seeing my heart.  Till next time…Я люблю тебя!

One of the views from may apartment.  The mountains here are actually more spectacular than this.

Sergey delivering a donation to the baby hospital.

Donations for Red River Orphanage