Reachout Bulgaria: Latest News

MEDVEN 

Week 1

Seven of us will be visiting Medven orphanage for the first week.  We will be continuing with the very rewarding work of therapy with the severely handicapped children

there.  It is such a joy to see their response and smiles as we work with them. I praise the Lord for the great love he has given me for these lost and neglected children.

 

 

The bathroom on that floor is very unsuitable for these children.  We plan to alter it to allow access for special shower chairs and a bath support chair (supplied free by R82 co.)  My interpreter and his father-in-law will do this for us with some help from the 2 men in our party while we are there.  This will give us the opportunity of bathing some of the children to show staff how to use the equipment.

However due to the changeover of staff there could be problems.  Please pray with us that we will be allowed to visit and do the therapy and the building work as planned.

PLEVEN

Week 2

Pleven Baby Orphanage has 232 infants aged 0 – 3

I am told they are in great need of many things.  They do not have enough money to buy the nappies they need so have to use rags.  They do not have plastic sheets or pants and are short of food and clothing.  I heard about it shortly before I came home in February and was able to send a gift of warm baby clothes through my interpreter who has a Christian friend in that town. I trust this will be sufficient introduction and in faith I am taking many clothes and blankets for them.  I am also trusting God to supply funds to purchase much needed nappies and food.

KUSTENDIL   

(30 children aged 3 – 7)

The playground at Kustendil gives the children there much pleasure. Sussanna, a Church youth worker from Norwich and myself hope to spend two days there introducing the children to the story of  Noah’s ark and doing some craft work with them.

                            

 

 

 

                Jenny Lambert  

Team members needed for work parties in August and October 2008

Application form available on request

"OTHER NEWS"

Bulgaria and the E,U.

People often ask me now if conditions have changed since Bulgaria was accepted into the European Union in January 2007. I have been in touch with many of our M.E.P’s and have been told that Bulgaria has been receiving money to help it’s Social programme since 2003. I have seen no evidence of this, improvements to orphanages have been made by  Humanitarian Aid organisations such as Reachout Bulgaria.

It will certainly be a mammoth task.  Bulgaria has a population of around 8 million.  There is great poverty in the country with little government help and as a result many children are abandoned.  The government admits to having around 20,000 children in care.  The orphanages are under staffed and under funded and in need of just about everything,  i.e. building repairs, heating, up-to-date laundry equipment, food, medicines, shoes, clothes, nappies, education and extra staff.

Special needs children are the worst affected, they exist rather than live without stimulation.  Many staff see them as worthless and are surprised that we should interact with them and that we get a response from them.

The B.B.C.4 documentary ‘Bulgaria’s Abandoned Children’ shown here in the U.K. several times has caused much protest to M.P.’s

The Bulgarian people, especially those who work in the orphanages are angry at what they see as misrepresentation of the way the children there are treated and have asked me to tell people it was not true.  Sadly I cannot do so as I have seen similar conditions in other orphanages during my time in Bulgaria..

There is still much work for Reachout Bulgaria to do.