The Kids Rehab Centre

Compared to the 1st few weeks here this past week and a half has been fairly quiet.  The Shelter Plus programmes are now finished until October and I have mostly been playing catch up with a bunch of stuff.  Then I twisted my knee on the way home from church Sunday and spent a couple of days with my leg up.  So I'm not getting around a lot yet but it's getting better each day.  I got to go with Lena T. to her Saturday programme at the kids rehab centre where we had a Bible lesson, craft time, snacks and quality time with the kids.

To refresh your memories, the kids rehab centre (which is also known as the boys rehab centre, even though they also have girls now) is for kids who have a parent(s) with alcohol or drug problems which ends up in the kids having a horrible home life.  The kids are brought to the centre by the state for a 9 month programme where they are given support counselling and are shown a loving environment to help build them up as individuals.  Right now there are around 40 kids there, almost double from last summer.  With the exception of 1 or 2 it is a whole new group of kids.  The director told me that all of them will not be going back to their families.  They will be transferred to orphanages with the exception of 5 boys who will be put into foster families.  So needless to say they need to see as much love as possible after the things they have gone through.  Every one of these kids are amazing and they get so excited when they see Lena come through the gates.

As I mentioned in a previous blog entry I wanted to take these kids to McDonald's.  In North America we take for granted that we can go there whenever we want.  The kids here can only dream of this as they just simply do not have the means to do it and it is a HUGE deal to them and McJoyful Christmas is still a few months away.  Well, today was the day we went and what a fun day it was.  The manager at the multiplex theatre gives the kids free admission to the movies, so we combined things and made it a McDonald's and movie day as McDonald's is just downstairs from the theatre.

I can't say enough how much I appreciate the McDonald's restaurants in Ukraine.  It's not that I've had bad experiences at McDonald's in North America, it's just that after seeing the staff in action at different restaurants with various groups over the last 2 years, the level of professionalism seems to be so much higher here in Ukraine.  The employees are so quick, efficient and have always treated us so well, thinking of little details that I always forget - like getting 40 plus balloons ready in a hurry and handing them out without even being asked.  Now, if they would just bring A&W to Ukraine so I can have a Papa burger with cheese, onion rings, a frosty mug of root beer...oh...sorry...I'm digressing.

I want to give a big THANK YOU to those of you who gave me donations while I was in Canada that enabled me to pull this off.  The rehab director said that the kids will remember this for a long time.  I'll let the photos speak for themselves.  As the kids are going to camp this weekend, and since I came in under budget, I was also able to sponsor some much needed sandals and swimsuits for the kids.

I am also still wanting to raise money to sponsor more picnics for the folks at Boorie Ooglie disabled home this summer.  I want them to get out of that place as often as possible and get some decent meals.  If you would like to help me do that or to help with other activities please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the new address below or send an e-transfer to blairslife1@gmail.com.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me and where you may want me to direct your gift.  You can also arrange monthly donations through LinK 127.  Canadian donations are tax deductible (but not those by e-transfer) and every dollar counts towards showing love to those who really need to see it.

Again, thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

LinK 127

833 Canaan Mountain Road
Kentville, NS
Canada B4N 4K1

Lena T's Saturday programme

Lena D. brought some of her home made goodies

He wanted me to make him some glasses

McDonald's and movie day

We saw Monsters University in 3D

L-R:  Igor, Lena T., Lena's niece Nastya and a very happy Rehab director

Catching My Breath

It's been a busy couple of weeks and I finally have time to sit down to write this update and to catch my breath.  In this past 2 weeks I helped out a few days at the Shelter Plus Centre with some day camps as well as going to a team building session this past weekend for Shelter Plus' volunteers.

I have also been visiting a little friend Maxim in the hospital.  Max is 8 years old and is one of the kids I visited in the former Sunshine Orphanage.  He has a lazy eye and needs corrective surgery for it.  He was transferred to another orphanage when Sunshine was closed and his new orphanage quickly made arrangements for him to get his surgery which will hopefully be this week.  Natalie brought him a bag full of toys and crafts and I brought him some groceries and treats and we spent some quality time with him.  In the hospitals here if friends or family don't bring food to patients they only get a "Boorie Ooglie" meal.  Although, Max is liked by the hospital staff and when I was there last a nurse had brought him some berries and homemade pastries.

I was not able to get back to the baby hospital for a visit as they have issued a month long quarantine and no visitors are allowed.  Instead, I was able to tag along with our Australian friend Gilli-Anne on a visit to the baby orphanage to spend quality time with some of the kids there.

In my last update I mentioned some activities that I want to raise funds for.  Well, hallelujah things have moved fast.  I had mentioned that I was sponsoring 1 picnic for the Boorie Ooglie folks and since then Gilli-Anne pitched in for 2 picnics as well as for the repairs of the pipes at the Rehab Centre.  Once the workers here get money in hand they move fast and this past week we had those 3 picnics.  It is always so good to see the residents enjoy some decent meals and a day of relaxation and swimming in the park.  Our coordinator here, Ira T., is so grateful to everyone who pitched in.  To those in Canada and Australia who donated, thank you soooo much.

As it is still the beginning of summer, Ira mentioned that they would like to have more picnics for the Boorie Ooglie folks over the summer.  Believe me, I would like to get the residents out of that place as often as I can so that they can get as many decent meals as possible and enjoy some pleasant surroundings.  Ira said that to hold one picnic it costs $450 (US) or a block of 4 days of picnics costs $1000 (US).  Would you like to help to improve the quality of life for these wonderful folks and give them some dignity they deserve so much?

So that's the nutshell version of my activities this past 2 weeks.  Added to the excitement was the earthquake and the strange weather.  Oh yeah...the earthquake...one night after midnight we had a 4.6 quake, which rarely happens in Krivoy Rog.  It lasted literally for 2 seconds shaking my bed enough to wake me up and it rattled the closet doors.  My 1st reaction was that someone had broken into the apartment but when I saw that everything was still secure I thought that maybe it was a mine explosion as Krivoy Rog is full of collieries.  After checking the news the next morning I realized then what had happened.  As for the strange weather - while we were away on the weekend we had a big thunder and lightening storm with heavy rain at the park and there were stories of hail the size of golf balls in town.  When I came back home I saw that there were a lot of leaves down in the neighbourhood and then I looked out my window and saw broken glass and building tiles all over the back yard.  I checked the news and not only were there pictures of golf ball sized hail someone had also posted video of a small twister.  So needless to say life has been VERY interesting here.  It makes me wonder what's in store next.

If you would like to help me to sponsor more picnics and other activities or to help with my ongoing support please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below or send an e-transfer to blairslife1@gmail.com.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me and where you may want me to direct your gift.  You can also arrange monthly donations through LinK 127.  Canadian donations are tax deductible (but not those by e-transfer) and every dollar counts towards showing love to those who really need to see it.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!  Happy Canada Day!!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.

Lwr. Sackville, NS

Canada B4E 2H5

One of the activities at the Shelter Plus day camp

Team building session for Shelter Plus volunteers

Max inspecting the goodies

Bubbles are always a hit at the baby orphanage

One of the picnics for Boorie Ooglie folks

On this day it was 40 degrees.  It was a great day to be at the river.

Back on the Road

I've now been back in Ukraine for just over a week.  All of the travelling from Canada went well, except for some night owls on the train and the lack of sleep that went with it.  So after being awake for nearly 3 days I wasn't able to adapt to the time change very well this trip.  The 1st Saturday was a complete blur.  Other than that the flights were perfect and no lost luggage.  I'm so glad to be back home in Krivoy Rog where the weather is actually summer.  I felt so mouldy with the cold and wet spring that Halifax has had this year.

This past week I kept busy with making plans as well as moving and settling in at a new apartment.  I'm house-sitting for some friends while they go away for the summer.  I also got a visit in at the baby hospital in the section where the abandoned babies are taken.  They are taken there for a health check before being transferred to an orphanage.  Babies that are already in an orphanage are also brought to this section when they get sick.

I was also able to spend some time with the folks from Boorie Ooglie disabled home a couple of days this week and on another day I helped with my friend Igor at a day camp at the Shelter Plus church.  While I was at the day camp there was a delivery of cherries being made to Boorie Ooglie that I was able to sponsor.  The diet that the home provides for the residents is...well...absolutely disgusting.  They just get slop to eat with some bread.  So needless to say the cherries and any other treat they might get from visitors is a complete luxury.  This is a big part of the reason I want to sponsor some picnics this summer.  On these picnics they would be given 2 or 3 decent meals as well as a day away from the institution at a beautiful park setting.  I'm still raising money for these picnics and I have already said that I will sponsor one picnic even though funds are limited right now.  I want to sponsor 4 picnics so that different groups from the home will be able to go.

I also met with the Director of the Children's Rehab Centre this week and said that I will take the kids to McDonald's.  Just like I did last summer we will make it a Movie and McDonald's day.  (The manager at the Multiplex gives the kids free movie tickets and McDonald's is just downstairs from the theatre.)  The director also mentioned that they have a need to repair the water pipes that go into the building and asked if I could help with that.  It is only a cost of $250; small to most folks in North America but a big deal here.  In Ukraine institutions get very little if any money from government, yet the government holds them to strict requirements for their buildings and they have to come up with their own funding.

If you would like to help me to sponsor these and other activities or to help with my ongoing support please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me and where you may want me to direct your gift.  You can also arrange monthly donations.  I will also accept e-transfers at blairslife1@gmail.com.  Canadian donations are tax deductible (but not those by e-transfer) and every dollar counts towards showing love to those who really need to see it.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

Happy Father's Day to all of the Dads!!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.
Lwr. Sackville, NS
Canada B4E 2H5

At the baby hospital

Shelter Plus day camp.  I helped at the archery booth.

It almost looks like I know what I'm doing.

Yura unloading the cherries for Boorie Ooglie

Yura and Lena passing them out in the cage.  The cage is another reason I want to get the folks to a park setting for a day.

Without the cherries this is the meal that they serve at Boorie Ooglie - slop with a squirt of ketchup and bread.

This is from a picnic sponsored by Loads of Love and the kind of picnic that I would like to sponsor 4 of.  Now doesn't that food look much better...and without the cage?

On The Move Again

I'm down to the last few days in Canada.  On Thursday I leave for Ukraine for the summer and then to Kyrgyzstan in September.  Needless to say I'm getting more and more anxious to get back with each passing day.

I haven't been doing much new lately except tying up the loose ends before I go.  I'm still fund raising for the activities that I mentioned in my previous blog entry.  There are 50 kids at the Children's Rehab Centre that I want to take to McDonald's.  As I mentioned before, going to McDonald's is a huge deal in Ukraine and these kids just simply don't have the means to go there and McJoyful Christmas is still a few months away.  The cost to do this is $400 which includes Happy Meals and transportation.

As I also mentioned in my last entry I want to sponsor some picnics for the folks at Boorie Ooglie so that they can get out of the institution for a day and get a decent meal and some dignity in a beautiful park setting.  The cost for one picnic is $450 which includes food and transportation, and as I mentioned last time I would like to sponsor 4 picnics for different groups from the home.

If you would like to help me to pull off these activities or to help with my ongoing support please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me.  You can also arrange a monthly sponsorship.  Canadian donations are tax deductible and every dollar counts towards showing love to those who really need it.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.
Lwr. Sackville, NS
Canada B4E 2H5

Another shot of last year's picnic for the Boorie Ooglie folks

While at McDonald's we like to play games with the kids to spend quality time with them.

These kids are truly thankful to have this opportunity.

Projects for Future

This past week has been a fairly quiet one.  In 3 weeks I’ll be back in Ukraine, and with the freezing temperatures here this long weekend I am even more anxious to get there.

On Thursday I helped out at another senior’s luncheon at Full Gospel Church which was a lot of fun.  Then on Friday I went to a ground breaking ceremony at my church to launch the building of our new Family Life Centre which will provide much needed space for banquets, sports and our various church activities.  It’s quite a project.

Speaking of projects, I have also been thinking ahead about what kind of projects I would like to do once I get back to Ukraine and to Kyrgyzstan in September.  I really could use some help in order to pull them off.  Here is what I’d like to do.

You will remember from my past blogs about the home at Boorie Ooglie for the mentally and physically disabled.  For those that don’t, Boorie Ooglie (which means brown coal) is a facility that is very run down and the residents are pretty much ignored by society in general.  They are not given a whole lot of dignity let alone any luxuries – luxuries like a decent meal.  Just don’t get me started about the quality of the meals there – I won’t be able to stop.

You may also remember from last summer’s blogs about my camping trip where we hosted a picnic for some of the Boorie Ooglie folks.  We went the night before to the park to set things up and then hosted a day of swimming and a picnic for them the next day.   I would like to sponsor at least one of these picnics so that the residents can get out of that facility for the day and enjoy a park setting, get a decent meal and get some dignity that they sooooo deserve.

They like to have 3 or 4 of these picnics each summer for different groups from the home.  The cost to sponsor one picnic is approximately $450.  I would really like to be able to sponsor 4 picnics.

I would also like to take the kids from the Rehab Centre to McDonald’s again.  To refresh your memory, the kids Rehab Centre is for children who have at least one parent with drug or alcohol problems which makes for a horrible home life.  The kids are taken to the centre for a 9 month programme where they are shown a lot of love and support to help them cope with their lives.  Unfortunately some kids will not be able to go back to their homes and will be transferred to an orphanage.

Other than McJoyful Christmas these kids do not get the chance to go to McDonald’s and it is a huge thing for them.  It costs approximately $200 to take 25 kids, which includes transportation and a Happy Meal.  This year I think there are around 50 kids at the centre so that would be $400 to sponsor.

I have also got some projects in mind to do in Kyrgyzstan but I will wait and mention those later this summer.

If you would like to help me pull off these projects or to help with my ongoing support please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me.  You can also arrange a monthly sponsorship.  Canadian donations are tax deductible and every dollar counts.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.

Lwr. Sackville, NS

Canada B4E 2H5

Some of the folks of Boorie Ooglie.  Yes, that's a cage this group is kept in during the day.  Don't get me started on THAT either.

More Boorie Ooglie folks and me

My friend Yura (2nd from right) and some Boorie Ooglie folks

One of the picnics from last summer

Some of the Rehab Centre kids at McDonald's last summer.  Often they don't have much reason to smile.

This is what my church in Canada looks like now

This is what it will look like in a few months

Happy Mother’s Day!!

This past was a quiet week that involved more of me biding my time until I get back to Ukraine.  In just under 4 weeks I’ll be back in Krivoy Rog.  I’m so anxious to get back and I’m looking forward to some warm weather to say the least.

On Friday I went to a fund raising concert for World Vision.  As my ride had to be at the church early I ended up volunteering at the concert.  It was a great time and it ended up that I got some blessings too.

If you would like to donate to enable me to bless and to show love to those who need to see God’s love in action when I get back to Ukraine please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me.  You can also arrange a monthly sponsorship.  Canadian donations are tax deductible and every dollar counts towards showing love to those that need to see love in action. 

As I am very blessed to have a lot of mothers in my life I would like to wish them all a very happy Mother’s Day. 

Again, thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.

Lower Sackville, NS 

Canada B4E 2H5

  

Volunteering at the World Vision concert

More volunteers

Jason Gray

Shane Claiborne

Yes, there was a yurt set up in downtown Halifax this weekend.  It was for a fair trade bazaar.

One of the vendors was selling shyrdaks from Kyrgyzstan.  A shyrdak is a traditional felt rug.

Today’s News

Today (Saturday) was a busy day.  This morning our team from church that’s going to Kyrgyzstan in September helped out at a bowling event for Special Olympics serving lunch to the participants.  It was great to spend time with the participants as well have time with the whole team together.  They are a great bunch and I’m really looking forward to seeing them in Tokmok.

Then tonight I went to a gospel concert at Cornwallis Street Baptist, which is my former home church from way back.  My best friend Thane helped to organize a concert of all of the men’s groups from various churches as a fund raiser for building onto the church there.  It was so nice to see some folks that I haven’t seen in a lot of years.  They were so excited to find out about me doing long term missions.  Some of them even told me that they knew even then (when I went to that church over 18 years ago) that I was going to be doing something like this.  It kind of strikes me funny that they knew long before I did.

Other than that I have been chomping at the bit to get back to Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan.  I know the next 5 weeks will go fast but right now it seems an eternity.  If you would like to donate to help me to sponsor activities and to show love to those who need to see God’s love in action when I get back please click the donations link at the right side of the blog for LinK 127 to donate on line.  You can also mail a donation to the address below.  Please remember to specify that your donation is for me.  You can also arrange a monthly sponsorship.  Canadian donations are tax deductible and every dollar counts towards showing love to those that need to see love in action.

As it is Orthodox Easter, I would like to wish all of my friends in Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan Happy Easter!! 

Thank you for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart.  Till next time… Я люблю тебя!

LinK 127

34 Wynn Castle Dr.

Lwr. Sackville, NS

Canada B4E 2H5

Go Team Kyrgyzstan

Special Olympics bowling

Gospel concert at Cornwallis Street Baptist