Her Story

We have received an influx of letters in the last few weeks. There's nothing I love more! I love hearing how everyone is doing and knowing they are getting my letters. It's heartwarming to have a connection on the other side of the world--for me and for the children who write.

One of my friends writes to a lovely young woman who happens to be a very talented artist. Now we know she is a talented writer as well. She sent a letter that is quite unique. For children at the orphanage, letter-writing can be very challenging. Many of us struggle to find words to share with children we have never met on the other side of the world. Imagine how hard it must be for those children to write to adults, Americans, they have never met--especially after having experiences with adults that have been far less than positive. So when this lovely young woman (who has my favorite Russian name) shared her story and a piece of her heart, it moved me to tears.

I believe she will do well and be successful. I believe her future is bright. She has skills and tools her peers do not, thanks largely to her life before her time at the orphanage. But she has experienced loss beyond her years. My heart is with her.



Here is part of her letter.

I was born in Kirov. I lived with my mom and friends. I have lots of friends. I used to visit my aunt every summer when I was a small girl. I ran the house and worked hard there. We did many things together with my aunt: we prepared firewoods, made pickles, went in the forest to pick mushrooms and berries. So you see we didn't have a spare minute there. And the thing is that we managed to do everything in time.

But sometimes it happens that the life becomes darker than black. Now I live in the orphanage in Sovietsk. But still I want to return home.

PARTY! and other news

I just wanted to give everyone a heads up about our fundraising efforts and other activities coming up.

Our big fundraiser will be held on July 3rd. It's going to be a really fun and family-oriented party to celebrate Independence Day. Lots of fun activities and tasty food. More details later, but mark your calendars and plan to attend. We're trying to raise money to support the extracurricular programming at the orphanage: music lessons, arts lessons, sports activities. We'd also like to raise some support to cover the travel costs of some folks going with us.

Thanks to some very generous donors, we received the balance of the money we needed for the life skills training course for the orphanage graduates to be held in June. This course is a great opportunity for the kids to learn about what they'll face in real life once they leave the orphanage.

We're planning to visit Sovietsk early this coming fall. We have a few spots open and we'd love to have you come along.

There are still plenty of kids without sponsors or pen pals. And there are lots of other ways to get involved in making life better for these great kids. Just let us know what you'd like to do.

Labels

Once you label me, you negate me. --Soren Kierkegaard

Ok, I know I've been gone a long time. And we are getting really busy with the stuff of caring for Sovietsk--fundraising, trip planning, and the like. But this soon-to-be MSW who has studied philosophy since high school has been thinking a lot about the importance of language, especially concerning our children, and so it's time to post.

You may have noticed you won't find the word orphan on this blog--at least, not unless we are quoting someone else. That's quite on purpose. Why?

Because our children are hardly different than you or I, they just happen to not be living with parents at this time.
Because our children have experienced so many losses or traumas that you or I may be unable to comprehend, it seems ridiculous to boil that down into one word.
Because our children have big hearts, are strong and brave, and have entire lives ahead of them.
Because our children are more than orphans.

I get that labels are useful for simple organization. But we as Sovietsk Supporters are not census workers--we are family! We are here to love the children for who they are, each individually. We're so different from them, but we're also the same.

So, we might talk about children who have been orphaned. Or the kids who live at the orphanage. Or children who are particularly vulnerable to this or that predicament or who have experienced trauma or neglect.
But mostly, we will talk of this young woman, or that little boy. Or if it's not too private, we will just use their names. Because that is who they are.

The popular term for this kind of langage in service circles is 'people-first' langage. And it's so important! Think of all of the labels over time which have fallen from common use: Leper. Dumb. Idiot. One that starts with R-----. And countless racial labels. Why? Because they don't amount to a whole person! I am more than a wife, or a woman, or a White person, or my intelligence, or my failings,or my accomplishments. I am Sarah, Ben is Ben, and Katya is Katya.

So, if you see me cringe at the word orphan, I hope you understand.