Two weeks ago, we visited the Zhila family in the Ossipovichi, Mogliev region of Belarus. The Zhilas are a part of Chernobyl Children's Project International's foster families program -- we take children out of orphanages and place them in carefully selected, real family homes.
You can read the stories of the Savin and Gudkovskie families -- remarkable families with amazing stories of survival.
We spent the previous night at an orphanage. As our van navigated the country roads toward Ossipovichi, I knew that seeing children in a loving family would be a jarring and welcome contrast. But I was haunted by the knowledge that these 10 children -- ages 5 to 16 -- have shocking stories of loss and neglect.
As we arrived, Petr (the father), was putting finishing touches on a new porch. He had been busy since our last visit, building bookshelves and desks for the children, and expanding the family areas of the home. His wife Galina made tea and told us how the children are adapting to family life. (Go to our website to see video of sisters singing a song to us.)
The children pulled our hands and excitedly took us from one room to the next. They giggled as they showed off their bedrooms, their new desks, their school projects and personal treasures. Looking at their happy faces I remembered terrible stories from their recent pasts. About how the birth mother of Tanya (11), Sasha (10) , and Kirill (5) spent food money on alcohol and left the children to starve. They found bits of potato peel to fry on the fire. How their father beat them with a stick after they ran away, and how they watched as he broke their mother’s legs. How they rescued her when she tried to commit suicide by hanging, and by cutting her wrists.
When Andrea (11) and Roxana (7) lost their mother in an accident, their father medicated his grief with alcohol. He tried to quit but couldn't, and they moved to their beloved grandmother's home. A house fire killed their grandmother, and left Roxana with burns over 30% of her body. Scars from her burns peeked out from the neck of her blouse as she and the other children performed songs for us and played with each other.
In the parlour I spotted a small shrine to their dead 5 year old son, and I realized that Galina and Petr knew something themselves about loss and moving on.
No doubt many challenges are ahead for this newly formed family. And yet, today, it seems natural for them to be together. The children behave as if they’ve been together forever. And Galina and Petr are grateful for their large family, and determined to surround their children with love and prepare them for a hopeful future.
The Zhila home was sponsored by the Cork Outreach Group of Chernobyl Children’s Project International. If you, your business, or community group would like to learn about sponsoring a “home of hope, email me.
