Ira Update
Firstly, a huge thank you to everyone who has made a donation on the Just Giving website, following the news of Ira’s cancer. The total amount donated is currently sitting at just over £3,400!!
(Although we exceeded our £3,000 target, the web page is still live and taking donations)
I travelled to Ukraine in March to visit Ira and to see how she was doing. Unfortunately, she has lost a lot of weight, and was looking very tired, but she was very positive about the upcoming battle and seemed very strong mentally. She has made some major changes to her diet and this has helped to keep her weight steady, but she did look very weak and not her usual vibrant self.
She asked me to thank everyone that has been making donations to the Just Giving page and to tell everyone that it has helped her to make some home improvements (new bed and some furniture) which have really helped her to relax at nights. It also means that she has got some money for medicines in the coming months.
I will keep everyone informed as to how she is progressing in future updates.
Easter Holiday Events – Family Orphanages
The trip to Ukraine was timed to coincide with the Easter holiday period in Ukraine, and the school holidays. This gave an opportunity to organise a few events for the kids during the holiday period. The first event, for the family orphanages, started off at the ten pin bowling alley in the City Most Centre. We requisitioned seven lanes, one for each orphanage and one for the adults, and enjoyed a full hour of bowling.
The kids really enjoyed it. The older kids battled it out for top spot, with the younger kids just excited when they were able to reach the end and knock anything down.
The great thing about the bowling for me was that all the kids names were on the scoreboard, so it gave me a chance to try and remember who was who for the rest of the day!
After the bowling we had a short walk to a city centre restaurant. It was here that helper Irina had organised an afternoon of entertainment, as well as a nice 3 course meal. The restaurant normally didn’t open until 5pm so we were able to negotiate a special rate for exclusive hire of the restaurant for the kids.
Everyone barely had time to get themselves seated before the first bit of entertainment had them back on their feet and taking centre stage…for some Indian dancing!
A dance group had agreed to come along and try and teach the kids some moves. The kids, along with one or two of the orphanage parents, really enjoyed it.
After the dancing it was time for some food. It was a real treat for the kids to be getting some “posh” food in a nice restaurant.
Next up on the entertainment front were a couple of “mad” professors! Astounding the children with their amazing scientific experiments, and chemistry mishaps.
These guys were hilarious! The kids and parents were in stitches, and really enjoyed the show that they put on.
So a full day of entertainment that everyone really enjoyed, so all left the restaurant heading back to their homes in a buoyant mood.
Easter Holiday Events – Topolinaya Orphanage
A few days later we provided the same Easter event for the Topolinaya orphanage.
There are still around 20 kids at the Topolinaya orphanage that we support, although the orphanage is getting used more and more as a temporary accommodation for displaced families from the war zone in the east of Ukraine.
We followed the same format as the first event, starting off with bowling then on to the restaurant for a nice meal and some “mad professor” entertainment.
Once again the kids really enjoyed the chemistry lesson.
At the end of the entertainment I was able to distribute some nice fleece tops, which had been kindly donated by Hibernian FC.
As a little extra for the Topolinaya kids we also organised a trip to a sweet making shop. At the shop they were able to see how the sweets were made, as well as getting a few away with them to sample.
With a big thank you from the kids at the end…
Easter Holiday Events – Community Parties
One of the main events that we’ve started to help fund are the community parties. It’s an opportunity for the family orphanages to have a get-together where children can play and orphanage parents can chat. One of the orphanages will host the event and we’ll try and get 2 or 3 of the other orphanages to come along and join in. We help to fund the events by helping out with food costs, transport, and making sure there are games for the kids to play.
During my visit we split the orphanages and had two separate community parties, and I was able to attend both.
The first was at the Hasanskaya orphanage and attended by the kids from 3 of our family orphanages . Hasanskaya was our first sponsored family home orphanage, and one where I always get a warm welcome from Yuri and Ludmilla.
Yuri had the barbecue fired up in the garden, Ludmilla and the older girls were preparing food in the kitchen.
The rest of the kids were out in the garden having great fun.
With the food ready, it was back inside for some top notch home made scran.
After lunch it was time for some more activities. Irina had brought along some footballs for the boys and some crafts for the girls.
Irina also had the imaginative idea to bring some coloured bags, tape and scissors along for a little competition between the kids. Later on in the afternoon she split the kids into 4 groups, with the task of designing an outfit for the future. The kids really took to the task and headed off into separate rooms to plan the outfits and then set about creating them. It was a great idea, and the kids really enjoyed the task.
The hardest part fell to the adults though, as they had to try and pick a winner!
There was a little show by the kids to finish off the day. Some of the kids did some poems, some sang, and some played instruments. We’ve got some very talented kids that we support.
The day was a huge success, and we received a huge thank you from the kids and from the orphanage parents for helping to make it happen.
The second community party was at the Ionova family orphanage and attended by the remaining 3 family orphanages that we currently support. The Ionova orphanage is one that the charity has just started supporting, so it was nice to be able to visit for the first time and meet with the orphanage parents.
As a thank you for the invitation we also brought along a few new games for the kids to play with.
It was another good opportunity for the kids to have an afternoon of fun ..
Irina had brought some balloons along to make some animal shapes…
…and there was an indoor sports day as well!
A good feed to keep the energy levels up…
…and the parents to sit and have a chat about there experiences and general Ukrainian life.
The afternoon went really well, with another huge thank you from kids and orphanage parents.
Child Sponsorship
If you are not already a Child Sponsor please consider sponsorship of one of the many children that we support in Dnipropetrovsk. Your monthly contributions will assist in providing birthday, Christmas and summer trips for these kids as well as helping to support the many other projects that we help fund for the children.
For details about Child Sponsorship please email me directly steven@dniprokids.com
Donating to Dnipro Kids
We have a secure link set up on the main website, for anyone wishing to make a direct donation to the charity.
You can also make small donations by text.
Simply text DNPR14 £2/£5/£10 to 70070
Visit the Facebook page and add Dnipro Kids to your friends list.
http://www.facebook.com/dnipro.kids
Yours,
Steven Carr,
Dnipro Appeal Committee.
