For three weeks in October and November, Open Arms was given the opportunity to return to Ukraine and the children we love. The purpose of this trip was to reconnect with the graduates in their new trade schools and learn more about how we can develop our long term ministry.
The Pravda Orphanage
Our time at Pravda was much shorter than normal because the kids were in school. But the four days we spent there were filled with so much fun, games, dancing and loving on these lonely children. While we were there we were able to hand out much needed socks, jackets, shirts and other warm winter clothes to all the children of Pravda. Though it was still fall by the calendar, the cold winter weather had already begun to set in so it was great to provide the kids with warmer clothes for the coming months. The kids and staff were very thankful for the help we were able to bring.
In addition to hanging out and strengthening our relationships with the kids at Pravda, we also were able to spend a lot of time with Dusia and Sergey. This young couple, both Pravda graduates, lives in a small house near the orphanage with their beautiful 7 month old daughter, Vala. We were able to bring baby clothes and other needed supplies to this amazing family who we have grown to love so deeply.We are thankful that God has so graciously blessed us to be allowed to keep going back to the orphanage and to continue our ministry with the kids and the staff at Pravda.
Graduates
One of our main goals on this trip to Ukraine was to connect with as many children as possible who graduated from Pravda this past year. As of September 1st, after completing the 9th grade, 45 children were placed in trade schools throughout the Sumy region and are now learning to become tractor drivers, receiving little care, and minimal education in cold and abusive environments. God completely blessed our search as we found children at train tracks, ran into kids at the bus station, and spent the majority of our time loving on these desperate hearts. After our initial connections, our apartment was continually filled with the faces of the children we love so much. It is clear that these children are ready for Open Arms ministry; they are ready for love and desire opportunity. Winter came in full force during our time in Ukraine, but the children were far from prepared for the frigid weather. Wearing windbreakers in 12°F is far from adequate. Open Arms took the opportunity to share the love of God with these children by taking them to the nearby market. For the first time in their lives they walked around a market, picked out what they wanted, tried it on, and purchased brand new jackets, shoes, gloves, pants, etc. Other firsts included: their first restaurant experience, first chocolate chip cookie, first McDonald’s hamburger, first experience in a supermarket, and, for Sasha Pevniv, he made his first wish on a birthday cake. Though their situations in life leave little room for hope, their spirits have not been broken. They long for more in this life: they have cried through many nights, faced abuse and hardships no child should ever experience, their loads are heavy, but we will work to show them that God’s love will never fail.
Life After Pravda
God continues to broaden our vision for what He will have us do in Ukraine. As we hung out with the graduates, we were able to see first hand the very real needs that fill each of their lives. The trade schools were uninviting places; most were run down and had poor facilities. The places where these kids live are cold, to say the least, and very lonely places. Our kids wore sweatshirts and jeans in the below freezing weather, with shoes that did little protect their feet from getting cold and wet from the snow. No wonder many of them were already sick, coughing constantly. Each month if the kids continue to attend the trade schools, they are given a small amount of money through the government. This usually equals between 10 to 30 dollars, hardly enough to survive on. This amount is not sufficient to clothe them and provides little to sustain their basic hygiene needs or transportation costs. Taking care of their physical needs, has always been a huge focus of our ministry, as we try to care for them in tangible ways and show them the love of Christ.
The children’s lives only get harder after their two years in the trade schools is completed and this is when they truly have no support. Our hope is to be able to get them into real schools that will actually train them to be able to make it in life; instead of their trade schools where most all of them are learning to become tractor drivers. Even though they have already been at their schools for a few months, they already see through the scheme: that their schools provide very menial education and are going to get them nowhere. Statistically, many of the kids will end up dropping out of school. Either way, at the end out their two years, most end up on the streets with no government assistance and no way to survive. That is huge reason why 70% of boys end up in crime. Our ministry longs to prevent this from happening to these children. We will be doing everything we can to provide them another path in life through tangible opportunities, as well as loving them and showing them that they are worth something.
It has been a long road establishing relationships with the kids and proving ourselves trustworthy, but God has truly developed these friendships and the kids are more open than ever. We have reached the point where they finally know that we are going to be there for them and that they can rely on us. As we grow in our relationships with them, we pray that God will open up opportunities to share more of our faith with them. These kids come from very hard backgrounds with personal tragedies that have happened in their own lives and the general cultural atheism that is still dominant. These children so desperately need to know God and how beautiful the gospel truly is. We will be looking into partnering with churches that will be inviting and welcoming places for our children to get involved. Please pray for God to work in their hearts and give them faith to believe in Him.Face of Open Arms
Name: Andre KovalenkoAge: 16
Andre is the kind of kid who rarely demands attention. He’ll stand on the sidelines and quietly observe everything that is going on. He comes across as a good, stable, responsible kid to the average observer, but it takes a long time to actually get to know his heart. He’s good at hiding his emotions, but his sadness is often portrayed as he lays on his bed alone and tries to shut out the world around him. When given time and attention, he is so easily filled with appreciation and joy. The smallest gift given to him will be undoubtedly treasured. It takes him a while to feel safe enough to build deeper relationships with people, but when he does, it is beautiful to be a part of. He is able to be so thoughtful and giving, chivalrous and protective towards those he loves. Over time, he is more able to express his true emotions towards those he trusts, even able to admit when he’s been hurt or when something meant the world to him. Much of his story has yet been told, but he has lived at the Pravda orphanage for much his life, alone with no siblings or family support. In a letter, he wrote that in his entire lifetime, he has never been given a present by anyone. An amazing person who never deserved the kind of life has been through, Andre now has the chance to develop his amazing potential under the love and support that Open Arms will provide.
How You Can Help
Many of you have asked how you can help and specific things you can do to be a part of this ministry. We would love to see you taking action to join us in helping these precious kids! Here are some ideas of things you can do to help now.
— Tell your friends! Talk to family, neighbors, co-workers, classmates, teammates, roommates and anyone else you know! Let them know about the needs of the forgotten orphans in Ukraine and what Open Arms is doing to help. The more people that know the more people there are to pray and help fund raise.
— Buy a bracelet for Christmas! Our leather name bracelets make great stocking stuffers, gift exchange items or Christmas presents! Give a gift that’s more than just a present – 100% of the proceeds from our bracelets go straight into our ministry supporting needy orphans in Ukraine.
— Organize a fund raiser! A garage sale might raise more money than you’d think. One Open Arms friend raised over $800! Any amount you can raise will help take care of the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the orphans in Ukraine. We can send bracelets, slideshow dvds and flyers to have at any garage sale, bake sale, car wash, benefit concert, auction, raffle or anything else you put together to help support Open Arms. Let us know if there is anything we can help you with to get your event running!
— Talk to your church! Open Arms would love to establish more connections with churches and you can help. Talk to your pastors and church leaders about what we are doing and how your church might be able to be a part of it! Encourage your church or youth group would like to get involved through prayer, financial support or by organizing a fund raiser. As time and travel will allow, we would love to come speak or attend a fund raising event. We will gladly send you a packet of information about Open Arms for you to give away to anyone who might be interested in finding out more information about our ministry or how they can support.
Prayer Requests
–Pravda – please keep the children of Pravda in your prayers, particularly through the cold and lonely winter months. Pray that God would continue to soften the hearts of the children and the staff to the gospel.
–Graduates – after visiting with many of the Pravda graduates on this trip, we have seen even more their many needs. Pray that God would provide for them and show them His love through others while we are away.
–Connections in Ukraine – we would love to be able to find and connect with a local church in Sumy Sumy
–Language – we are all still working to learn Russian and Ukrainian so we can communicate more with our kids. Pray that God would give us understanding as we learn. Also pray that we would be able to find a tutor once we move.
–Our Home in Ukraine – we were able to look at a few houses in Ukraine
–Fund Raising – praise God for the generous giving of many supporters up to this point. We are still in need of around $50,000 for our house alone. Pray that He would move in people’s hearts to give to Open Arms so that we can have what we can have enough to cover all our start up costs.
–Non-profit Status – we are still awaiting approval of our non-profit application. Pray that it would get processed quickly.
–Partnering with other organizations – Open Arms is looking to partner with churches, businesses, organizations and foundations to build up financial and prayer support. Pray that we would be given and respond wisely to opportunities to present our ministry to potential ministry partners and supporters. If you have any connections with your church or any other group you think might be interested in joining our ministry, please let us know!
Thank You
To those of you who pray for, give to, and encourage the ministry of Open Arms, thank you. If you are interested in learning more about Open Arms or how to support, please let us know! Your support in this ministry is what allows us to continue sharing God’s love with these children. We would not be able to do this without you!