I recently started sponsoring a 10 yr old Ukrainian boy called Andrey through Jeremiah's Hope: http://www.jeremiahshope.org/

He sent me a handwritten letter in Russian, with a typed English translation and a Christmas card:

Dear Sarah
How are you? I am doing fine. My name is Andrey. I am 10 years old, almost 11, born January 10th 1999 in Mariupol, Ukraine. I go to 4th grade. I am not a very good student because I am quite lazy and don't like to read much. I have a brother, his name is Ruslan, he is 15. He is in grade 8. He likes soccer very much. I like soccer too.
We have been in the Transitional Living Centre for a year already. Our parents lost their parental rights, they drank and didnt take care of us properly. Our parents live in Mariupol, but we odn't see each other, they never visit us.
We had a flu epidemic in Ukraine, that's why there was a quarentine and we didn't go to school for 3 weeks. At first it was fun as we didn't have any classes and stayed at home. I watched TV, read and played computer games. Then we started doing homework anyway because the teachers gave us homework on the phone. They didn't want us to lag behind with the school programme. Many people were sick but none of the kids in the TLC got sick. We resumed school on November 23rd. I was glad to see my school friends again. I attend our church services and youth classes. We had Friends Day in our church on Sunday. We had a concert and a 'sweet table' where everybody brought desserts. On Saturday our youth group went to a conference but I didn't go because of my age.
We had guests from America. They were missionaries form California. They had bible classes in our orphanage and I helped them.
Please tell me about yourelf and your family. I will be glad to know that. Thank you for your support and your prayers,
Yours,
Andrey

I wish I was going on the mission to hand the boxes out!!!!!! It would so cool to travel to the countries where they go, and hand the boxes out and see the children's smiles as they opened them. Maybe next year. Something to look into at least. The above animation is the efforts that I coordinated in my office. Well done everyone!

Would it be complete insanity to drive from England to Ukraine??!! A good friend of mine at work and I have been discussing it for a spring 2010 adventure! It would be about 1600 miles, crossing France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Poland and into Ukraine. It would give us the flexibility to take more items, and would just be a fun road trip to take. I don't know ... we will have to think long and hard about it but it would be an ADVENTURE for sure!!!

Please check out the brand new wesbite I have designed for the charity I worked with in Ukraine. Our facilitator, Alexander, has over 20 years experience in adoption facilitating, and has helped over around 50 Ukrainian children find their forever families. If you are looking into independent adoption in Ukraine, consider contacting them.

http://www.hope.ck.ua/

I really enjoy making websites, graphics, etc so please feel free to contact me if you have any adoption related graphics you'd like to have made, free of charge.

Have a great day,

Sarah xxxx

I am going nuts, stir crazy, orphan crazy!!! I am BORED again of my tedious little life and need a new project to look forward to and to plan and organise and shop for! I am missing Ukraine and the children oh so very much, my heart is heavy thinking about them and wondering if they are OK and if they're happy and safe and healthy. I need to go back to Ukraine ASAP, and do things slightly differently this time. I didn't really get chance to find out about the children as individuals; why were they at the orphanage, how long they'd been there, what was their "special need" etc. We were left without a translator or teacher a lot so we were just about to communicate through gestures to the children ... lots of gestures, charades and giggles!


I have two projects maybe on the horizon. One is a hosting programme for children from Belarus affected by Chernobyl. Even though it was over 20 years ago now the land around the area is still very reactive and the children really benefit from "clean air holidays". Just 4 weeks in the UK breathing fresh air, eating fresh produce adds 4 whole years to their life span!!! I emailed the local contact for it yesterday. I haven't heard back yet. I know it was only 24 hrs ago but I am very impatient. I don't do waiting!!!!


My other project is to be coordinator at my office for a Operation Christmas Child collect of shoe boxes. It's only June 1st but I'm already begging everyone to save their shoe boxes. I am just not a shoe-buyer so I never have boxes!


Yesterday I got out all my bags of donations left over from trip #1 to Ukraine and sorted into things that could go into the shoe boxes, and things that could be given to the Belorussian children - clothing, shower gels etc. But my feeling of I NEED TO DO SOMETHING NOW is overwhelming. Someone, help me, suggest something!!!!



Here's some more photos from Ukraine. My heart aches for these children and to see them again.

The little group at the Special Needs home:

WOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW What a trip! I loved Ukraine so much, I am dying to go back again! I hope that trips like this one will become a regular part of my life. I loved meeting the children and spending time with them, and I miss them all. Here's some photos:

I want to go back next year. We were told we had seen some of the better orphanages, and I want to see the worse ones. I want to help as much as I can. I read a lot of adoption blogs of people who have/are adopting from UKR and you and your beautiful children came to mind so much during my trip.

I have enjoyed being back home and spending time with my BEAUTIFUL little nephew!!