Grace Family Center, St. Petersburg

It's five years since I visited the Russian Orthodox Family Center Grace in St. Petersburg Russia. The presence of the Lord was strong and for me It was like coming home to my own family. Taking photos at Grace was like taking photos of my own family and not of strangers.

Click here if you want to see the rest of my photos from Grace Family Center: https://www.flickr.com/photos/chasid68/8602861630/in/album-72157633123794556/

Text and Photo: Mikael Good

Änglabesök på ryska fängelser och straffkolonier

I år firar det ryska välgörenhetsprojektet Christmas Angel Tree tioårsjubileum. Tack vare projektet har tiotusentals brustna familjeband återupprättats. Fångarnas barn har fått julhälsningar och julklappar från sina fängslade föräldrar genom projektet, i vissa fall har deras barn inte hört av sina föräldrar på många år. Tusentals fångar i Ryssland har fått hopp om en bättre framtid och många fångar har lämnat sin kriminalitet bakom sig och börjat om på nytt med sina nära och kära när de suttit av sina straff.



I Sverige är det tomten som kommer med julklapparna men i Ryssland är det julängeln som levererar klapparna.Välgörenhetsprojektet Christmas Angel Tree (skrivs i fortsättningen änglaträdet) startade 2003 och under sin relativt korta livstid har änglaträdsprojektet spridit sig till många regioner i Ryssland. Ett stort antal volontärer arbetar med projektet och tack vare dem finslipas och utvecklas projektet varje år. Fångarnas familjer besöks genom projektet och de arrangerar möten mellan fångarna och deras barn. Änglaträdsprojektet organiserar även speciella informationsträffar i fängelserna där de betonar vikten av att kunna förlåta för att gå vidare i livet.

Änglaträdets volontärer har fått se många trasiga familjeband helas och upprättas under de år som projektet har pågått. I vissa fall har barnen inte sett sina barn sedan de var spädbarn. Trots föräldrarnas svek är barnen oftast väldigt förväntansfulla och ser oftast fram emot att få träffa dem när kontakten har tagits. Larisa Dubrovkina är en av änglaträdets kordinatorer. Hon berättade nyligen att hon hittat ett foto på internet som föreställde en flicka som kramar en teddybjörn, vilken hon hade fått från sin fängslade mamma genom projektet. Larisa skickade ett meddelande till flickan. När flickan svarade på Larisas meddelande skrev hon att efter det att hennes mamma hade blivit frigiven hämtade hon hem henne från barnhemmet där hon bott medan mamman satt i fängelse. I dag lever de ett vanligt familjeliv och teddybjörnen som hon fick från sin mamma genom änglaträdet är hennes mest älskade och dyrbaraste ägodel.



Även om många av berättelserna om föräldrar och barn som har återförenats har lyckliga slut, händer det allt som oftast att det ligger en ganska så komplicerad historia bakom. För några år sedan träffade änglaträdets koordinator Larisa Dubrovkina en fängslad kvinna som hade en dotter som hon inte haft kontakt med på många år. Kvinnan ville ge en julklapp genom änglaträdet till sin dotter i ett försök att återupprätta den brutna kontakten. Hennes dotter vägrade att ta emot julklappen på grund av mammans tidigare svek. Men mamman var envis och följande år deltog hon åter i änglaträdet med förhoppning om att kunna återknyta kontakten med dottern som hon missunnat i allt för många år. 



Denna gången tog Larsia god tid på sig med att prata med flickan. Larisa försökte förklara för henne att alla kan göra misstag i livet men att vi inte ska vara allt för snara med att döma, vi ska alltid vara beredda att förlåta och ge en extra chans. Till sist tog flickan emot gåvan från sin mamma. Några veckor senare när Larisa var med och samlade ihop enkäter som fångarna på kvinnofängelset fyllt i om änglaträdet, kom flickans mamma fram till Larisa och tackade för alla hjälp. Hon berättade att hon börjat kommunicera med sin dotter igen och nu hoppades hon på en bättre framtid för dottern och sig själv och att de hade börjat planera för att bo tillsammans efter att hon hade blivit frigiven från sitt fängelsestraff.



Fängelseadministrationerna på de olika fängelserna ger gärna sitt tillstånd till änglaträdsprojektet. De har sett att projektet har en väldigt positiv effekt på fångarna. De är också väldigt hjälpsamma under uppstarten av projektet och de hjälper till med organiseringen. Änglaträdet är inte bara ett väldigt intressant och spännande projekt det är också ett projekt som rör människor på hjärtedjupet. Några reportage om änglaträdet har sänts på Rysk TV och publicerats i ryska tidningar och de reportagen har fått en mycket positiv respons av tittare och läsare. 



I år kommer en känd rysk fotograf att följa arbetet på olika fängelser runt om i landet. Han ska göra bildreportage om änglaträdsprojektet för olika magasin och tidningar och tanken är att hans arbete även ska resultera i en utställning och en bok.



Vill du läsa mer om Christmas Angel Tree:s arbete? I det här reportaget kan du läsa om en liten pojke som placerades och växte upp på barnhem i Ryssland när hans mamma blev dömd till fängelse. Pojken älskade sin mamma och drömde om att få återförenas med henne trots att hon under många år hade svikit och försummat honom: Jag vill bo tillsammans med min mamma

Text: Maria Shipilova och Mikael Good, Hjärta till Hjärta. Foto: Fängelsemissionen, Ryssland

Om du vill vara med och stötta Christmas Angel Trees viktiga och framgångsrika arbete med att återupprätta familjerelationerna mellan ryska fångar och deras barn kan du ge en gåva till projektet via hjälpverksamheten Hjärta till Hjärtas 90-konto: 90 08 85-7, märk din gåva med "änglaträdet".

Dela gärna det här inlägget med dina vänner och arbetskamrater. Tack på förhand!

Jag vill bo tillsammans med min mamma

Det här är en berättelse om en liten pojke som placerades och växte upp på barnhem i Ryssland när hans mamma blev dömd till fängelse. Pojken älskade sin mamma och drömde om att få återförenas med henne trots att hon under många år hade svikit och försummat honom på grund av sin kriminalitet och sitt missbruk.

Trots att Sergei inte hade hört av sin mamma på flera år och att hon hade försummat honom redan innan hon blev fängslad på grund av sitt missbruk, drömde Sergei om att hans mamma bara skulle dyka upp på barnhemmet och hämta hem honom så att de kunde bo tillsammans igen. Men det var bara en dröm och ju längre tiden gick desto troligare var det att han skulle hamna i ett fosterhem. Det hade till och med gått så långt i planeringen att föreståndaren på barnhemmet hade valt ut en lämplig familj som de tyckte skulle ta hand om Sergei. När den familjen stod i begrepp att besöka honom på barnhemmet blev han varse om det och med tårar som rullade ned för kinderna sa han med bruten stämma:
- Jag vill inte till något fosterhem, jag vill bo med min mamma!

Barnhemsföreståndaren blev berörd av Sergeis tårar och bestämde sig för att skjuta upp fosterhemsplaceringen ytterligare en tid, åtminstone tills dess att Sergeis mamma hade avtjänat sitt straff.

Samtidigt arrangerade samordnaren för projektet “Christmas Angel Tree” i St: Petersburg Vera Roganova projektet på kvinnofängelset IK-2. Projektet går i korthet ut på att personal och volontärer från Christmas Angel Tree förmedlar julklappar och hälsningar mellan fångar och deras barn. Ett av syftena är att hela trasiga familjeband och återupprätta den kontakten som i många fall har gått förlorad när barnens föräldrar dömts till fängelse. Många av fångarna passade på att skicka en julhälsning och en julklapp till sina barn.


Sergei, Elena och Vera

Vera mindes speciellt en ung kvinna vid namn Elena Erofeeva. När hon dömdes till fängelse för stöld placerades hennes son Sergei på ett barnhem i Vyborg (Viborg) nära den finska gränsen. Trots att Elena inte hade träffat sin son på lång tid var hon orolig för honom och hon bad Vera att hon skulle ge honom en julhälsning och en julklapp från henne. När en av våra volontärer besökte barnhemmet och överlämnade julklappen till Elenas son meddelade barnhemsföreståndaren att det fanns en familj som ville adoptera Sergei. Men Sergei hade varit mycket bestämd med att han inte ville bli bortadopterad. Han hade redan en mamma som han ville leva med. När Elena fick höra vad hennes son hade sagt till volontären blev hon mycket rörd. Hon kände att hon hade svikit Sergei genom sin kriminalitet och sitt missbruk. Och hon hade inte funnit till hands för honom när han behövde henne som mest.

Pojkens envishet fick hennes moderskänslor att vakna och sakta men säkert började Elena att förändras till det bättre och hon ställde allt mer in sig på att hon skulle bli en riktig mor för sin son och leva tillsamman med honom när hon hade avtjänat sitt straff i maj i år. Vera och några volontärer från fängelsemissionen fortsatte att träffa Elena regelbundet och de samtalade och bad tillsammans med henne. Att de verkligen brydde sig om Elena och visade henne en kärlek och vänlighet som hon inte upplevt tidigare bar till sist rik frukt och i början av maj strax innan hon blev frigiven böjde sig Elena för Jesus och tog emot Honom som sin frälsare och Herre. 

Elena och Sergei

När Elena blev frigiven hjälpte några av volontärerna i Christmas Angel Tree henne att få tag på ett arbete och en bostad. Elena gick även med i en församling där hon fick mycket hjälp och stöd av sina trossyskon. Under ett par månader redde hon upp de problem som hon hade med polisen och andra myndigheter. Elena genomgick en radikal förändring under den här korta tiden. Från att bara ha låtit sitt liv kretsa kring sitt eget liv och sina egna problem hamnade hennes fokus istället på sonen. Hon började att regelbundet besöka Sergei på det sommarläger för barnhemsbarn som han var på. Elena lyckade även få Sergeis far som hon inte hade träffat på många år att ta kontakt med sin son och han började också att besöka honom.

Elena förväntade inte att någon skulle våga lita på henne. Under alla de åren som hon hade varit slav under sitt missbruk hade hon behandlat sina nära och kära illa. Nu fruktade hon att hennes släktingar, arbetskamrater och grannar skulle förskjuta henne, men det blev helt tvärtom. Alla hennes arbetskamrater, släktingar, grannar och även de övervakarna som hon träffade såg att hon var helt förändrad och de behandlade henne väl och gav henne mycket hjälp och stöd.

I början av augusti i år ringde Elena till Sergei på barnhemmet, hon hade en bra och en dålig nyhet att berätta för sin son. Hon frågade honom vilken han ville höra först. Sergei tänkte efter en stund och sa sedan att han ville höra den dåliga först.
Elena sa med lätt darrande stämma:
- Den dålig nyheten är att jag aldrig har besökt dig på barnhemmet under alla år som du har varit där, hon var tyst en liten stund och sedan sa hon:
- Vet du vilken den goda nyheten är? 

Sergei svarade:

- Nej det vet jag inte. Berätta för mig.

Elena fortsatte:
- Jag ska komma till dig på barnhemmet och hämta hem dig till vårt gemensamma hem. Den 10 augusti i år återförenades Sergei äntligen med sin mamma.


Sergei och Elena

Elena berättade att hon själv inte hade trott att hon skulle kunna få tillbaka vårdanden och kunna ta hem sin son på bara två månader. Att hon kunde göra det är ett mirakel, men å andra sidan är julen en tid för mirakel. Elena är mycket tacksam mot alla dem som engagerade sig i hennes livssituation, och speciellt mot alla i projektet “Christmas Angel Tree”. Tack vare att de levde ut sin tro och gav Elena det som hon behövde mest i sitt liv, kärlek och omtanke, blev hon frälst och både hennes och Sergeis liv blev helt förvandlade.

Ett ryskt filmteam från TV-kanalen TBN-Ryssland följde med Elena när hon hämtade Sergei på barnhemmet. Inslaget sändes i rysk TV i mitten av augusti. Christmas Angel Tree har fått tillstånd att använda sig av inslaget i sitt arbete. Och de hoppas att det ska kunna fungera som uppmuntra för andra fångar som är i en liknande situation som Elena.

Text: Mikael Good. Foto: Fängelsemissionen, Ryssland

Om du vill vara med och stötta Christmas Angel Trees arbete med att återupprätta familjerelationerna mellan ryska fångar och deras barn kan du ge en gåva till projektet via hjälpverksamheten Hjärta till Hjärtas 90-konto: 90 07 85-7, märk din gåva med "änglaträdet".


Dela gärna det här inlägget med dina vänner och arbetskamrater. Tack på förhand!

Miracles take place around the Christmas Angel Tree

It´s the tenth anniversary of the charity project called Christmas Angel Tree. We celebrate ten years of many healed family bonds between convicted parents and their children. Thanks to the project thousands of imprisoned Russians have found a hope for a better future, broken family bonds have been recovered and many children has received news from their mothers or fathers in prison.

Thanks to the Christmas Angel Tree project over 14,000 children has received a Christmas gift and a greeting from their imprisoned parents. The project has been very effective in restoring family bonds between prisoners and their children. The project started in 2003 and during its relatively short lifetime it has spread to prisons in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Vologda, Arkhangelsk, Stavropol, Krasnoyarsk, Bashkortostan. Many volunteer coordinators works with the project and they improves the project, they arrange meetings between parents and their children, visit the families of the prisoners, organize special events in prison colonies in order to inform people about the importance of having a good contact with their families, and they inform the prisoners and their families about the importance of forgiveness.

Our volunteer coordinators are sure that the Christmas Angel Tree project helps to recover broken family bonds between prisoners and their families. It also allows some of the children to remember their parents. In some case they have not seen them since they were toddlers. And although they haven't heard anything from their parents in years they are often looking forward to meet them. Our coordinator Larisa Dubrovkina told us that she recently found a photo on the internet of a little girl who hold a toy that she had received thanks to the project. She wrote a message to the little girl and found out that after her mother was released from prison, she took her daughter home from the orphanage were she had lived during her mothers time in prison. They live as a ordinary family today. A teddy bear that she received from one of our coordinators on behalf of her mother is her personal favorite and is the toy that she values most.

Even if many of the stories have a happy ending, there are also some more complicated stories. A couple of years ago our coordinator Larisa Dubrovkina met a imprisoned mother of a daughter during the project. We tried to give a Christmas gift to her daughter on her behalf. But the girl refused to receive the gift due to her mother's earlier betrayal. But her mother refused to give up and she took part in the project the following year eager to restore the lost family bonds with her daughter. Larisa brought another Christmas gift to the girl from her mother. This time Larisa had some time to talk with the girl and she tried to explain to her that everybody can make a mistake, but we shouldn't be to soon to judge them, we shall always give them a extra chance. Finally the girl accepted the gift. When our coordinators gathered questionnaires from the prisoners, the girl’s mother came up to Larisa and thanked her for the help. She had started to communicate with her daughter and now she had hope for a happy future for her and her daughter and that they would be able to live together after she spent her time in prison.

Igor Polyakov who is our coordinator in Yaroslavl reported that this year five colonies from prison number six has been taking part in the project. 
- It´s the third time that we organize the project this year and the number of participants are increasing for every year. The increasement of the project makes us very glad especially when people who initially were very suspicious towards the project joined it one ore two years later. This time we arranged special concerts for the prisoners. Our intention was to inform them about the importance of the family in a more creative way. Over the years we have seen that people have a tendency to come to such performances not only for having a good time but they also come for the reason to learn something important that can put them in the right direction in life, said Igor Polyakov.



Andrey Mitroshin who is our coordinator in Nizhniy Novgorod noted that the project gives the prisoners an opportunity to understand how much a family really means. It gives them a reason to comprehend their life in a new way and to start it all over again while they still are in prison. So that they are better prepared for a life outside the prison walls.

Our coordinators think that the Christmas Angel Tree project should be spread to other countries. The project has no geographical limits and it would be interesting to involve other countries in it. 
- A gift can be sent by mail but it’s very important that a coordinator visit the families of the prisoners, meet their children and encourage them, said Igor Polyakov.

The prison administrations of various Russian prisons give their approval to the project because it has a very positive influence on the prisoners. They are also very helpful when we start up the project and they help us with the organization of the project.
The Christmas Angel Tree project is not only a very interesting project it´s also a heart-touching project. Some Christmas Angel Tree stories has been published in Russian media and they have received a very positive response from the viewers or readers. In Christmas time the hearts of people are wide open, people are willing to donate their kindness to others, to bring joy to they neighbor's house and some of them willingly join the project.



There are no other projects like the Christmas Angel Tree project in Russia at this time. Our coordinators receive thankful letters from prisoners and their children for Christmas gifts and messages. Many of them are thankful to the project for providing aid to heal family bonds that has been broken. Imprisoned parents regains faith in that their children are waiting for their release. Their children get confidence and faith that they are remembered and loved thanks to the letters and gifts from their imprisoned mothers and fathers.



The time for the project was chosen with a greater purpose. It was chosen with a very special purpose. In Russia people believe that miracles happens on Christmas. For some families such Christmas miracles can become a reality with the help of a Christmas Tree Angel.

If you are a EU citizen you can support Christmas Angel Tree project by donating money to the Swedish NGO Heart to Heart who sends the donated money to the Russian organization, so that they can continue with their important work among prisoners and their children.

Text: Maria Shipilova and Mikael Good. Photo: Mikael Good & Various Russian photographers

The Miracle baby from St. Petersburg

Imagine that you are 17, orphaned, homeless and pregnant. You have no relatives you can contact, you have just been ejected from your student home, your best friend has turned her back, you have nowhere to turn or go, you are completely alone and abandoned by everyone. That was the situation of Sveta who I met at Grace Family Center in St. Petersburg in 2011.

Svetas parents died in a car accident when she was only nine.  She ended up at the orphanage Swallow and lived there until she graduated. After graduation she began studying at a vocational school, where she managed to get into a student home. Shortly thereafter she met a guy, with whom she became involved and not long after she was pregnant. The relationship with her ended before she realized she was pregnant. He was not at all interested in supporting a child, so he told her to get an abortion.

“First, I also wanted to perform an abortion and I booked one at the hospital, but just before the abortion would be performed I changed my mind and decided that I would keep the baby,” says Sveta, and looks nervously down at the floor. 

The fact that Sveta had become pregnant was in itself a miracle. She had been told that she could never become pregnant due to a congenital defect in the womb. This was with all certainly the only chance Sveta would ever have at being a mother. She decided that the child would be born.

Abandoned by a friend

When the staff at the student home learned she was pregnant, they expelled her. Sveta had to stay with a friend, but her friend wanted to sublet the room Sveta was staying in for a profit. When she found out Sveta could not afford the new rent she kicked her out. Sveta was now both homeless and pregnant. As a last resort, she called the former headmistress of the Swallow orphanage. She could not help Sveta but she gave her the phone number to the Grace Family Center in St. Petersburg. Sveta phoned them and when they answered, she said with sheer desperation in her voice:

“I am very pregnant. I have nowhere to live and there is nobody who can or wants to help me.”

The staff of Grace decided that Sveta could stay at the family Centre apartment and picked her up the same afternoon. Sveta moved in at the beginning of September 2009. Her son Sergei was born in October the same year.

“I am very grateful that I kept Sergei and did not undergo abortion.  It is not certain that I can  have more children.  Sergei is a real godsend, a miracle baby. He is a healthy and very happy little boy,” Sveta lovingly wraps her arms around her little baby boy.

Sergei gets his hands on a toy camera, and as he jumps down from his mother’s lap he begins to take pictures of me. I take out my camera and snap a photo of him, when I show him the picture he starts to laugh when he realizes it’s he on the photo. Sergei is a happy little guy who enjoys being the center of attention and while at Grace, there is always a lap that he can sit in.

The biggest events in my life

Sveta really enjoys living at Grace, although it sometimes gets too crowded and noisy there. The warm Christian atmosphere and all the friendly people in her neighborhood who live out their faith led to Sveta becoming envious of them, she wanted what they had.

“The Greatest that has happened to me here at Grace is that I have received Jesus as my personal Saviour and Lord and that I have become baptized. My mother used to talk to me about Jesus when I was a child and when I lived at the orphanage we used to go to church a couple of times a year but it is only here at Grace that I have met people who actually live out their faith,” She says with a radiant smile.

Despite that all who come to Grace are not Christian most usually go to services at the nearby Russian Orthodox Church. The priests and nuns often visit Grace, where they hold bible studies and talk to those who live in or visit the Centre. 

When Sergei becomes two years the staff at Grace will help Sveta to get an apartment where she and her son can live. Then Sergei can start at nursery school and Sveta can start looking for jobs. When Sergei was born Svetas grandmother died and she inherited a small area of land that she is considering to sell for an initial capital. God has really taken care of Sveta and Sergei.

   

Love and goodness is something we all need

Grace is a family center in St. Petersburg that follows this motto: love and goodness is something that everyone needs. They have created a Christian family community for single mothers and orphans. The staff of Grace regularly visits orphaned children and young people at Hostels, boarding schools and orphanages in St. Petersburg and the surrounding area. They preach the Gospel and invite the children to the community at the family center. All orphans should know where they can go when they have finished school and are expected to fend for themselves.

Their work is important, especially in a large city as St. Petersburg where solitude is widespread and many former orphanage children easily fall into the wrong company. There are beds at Grace where those who need extra support can stay. The staff of Grace is Christian and works in close connection with the local Russian Orthodox Church which also pays the cost of their little three room apartment. The goal of the operation is to invite the orphans and single mothers to a personal relationship with Jesus and get them into the Christian community.

   

Many foreign pastors and evangelists have tried to start congregations in Russia, most of these have failed. Personally, I believe that their failures are due to the fact that there are major gaps in our understanding of how Russians think, acts and feel. The key to understand Russia and its citizens is to know the history of the country. Many foreign pastors and evangelists have, in addition to the Gospel, attempted to preach their own lifestyle and values. I believe in the revival of Russia, a revival that originated in the Great Russian Orthodox Church. Places like Grace Family Center can be key-points for the revival and we can give them our support through our prayers and financial support. Jesus is the answer for Russia!

Text and Photo: © Mikael Good, All Rights Reserved.

A Oasis Of Grace In The Darkness

Places like Jayer in St. Petersburg are dark places that make far too early graves for young people who never stood a real chance in life. Even if the situation is tough for young adults who´s graduated from institutions in Russia there are some oasis of Grace to be found in the darkness.

When orphans turn 18 they are dropped from the institutions where they grew up. One day they where kids and the other day they were grownups who don´t know how to live in the real world on their own. The problem is that they have not learned to deal with the various problems of life that they now encounter. They are completly left alone and don´t have any parents, siblings, grandparent or other persons who care about them and can help them in this new situation. They often lack the everyday knowledge that others children learn in their families, such as washing clothes, cooking, managing household cash. They often feel lonely and left out, and in reality, they really are. 

The statistics for orphans who graduate from institutions in Russia is very dark. Only 10% of them can adopt to a normal life in the society after graduation. The other 90% are doomed to a life in misery which often puts them in far too early graves. Some of them are lured into prostitution and criminality, some of them becomes alcohol or drug addicts. some of them end up as homeless or couch surfers and some of them take their lifes.

Jayer is street talk for a girl who is willing to do any kind of sexual act with everybody she meets. It´s also the name of a unfinished hospital in S:t Petersburg. Jayer is a house of death were young prostitutes sell their bodies for drug money and they spread HIV to customers who often refuses to use condoms. It´s a place where heroin addicts injects slow death into their veins, most of them are HIV-positive and when they share their needles they also share the deadly disease. Jayer is also a place were homeless people live and young hipsters get together to have Squat Parties in the weekends. Those who come to Jayer are exposed for GHB and heroin and many of them end up as addicts.

Nearly 70% of all heroin addicts in Russia are young people and you can find places like Jayer all over the country. It´s estimated that between 1.5 to 3 million out of 142 millions Russians are heroin addicts. The Russian authorities are not powerless before the big drug problem in the country. In recent years, the authorities have invested a lot of money on drug prevention among young people. And they try to limit the supply roats of heroin and other drugs flowing in from Afghanistan. 21% of the heroin produced in Afghanistan goes to Russia.

Even if the future for former orphans are very dark. There are some oasis of Grace to be found in Russia. One such oasis are Grace Family Center which is located in a Russian Orthodox monastery in St. Petersburg. The work at Grace is very successful and according to Valentina who is the volunteer director at Grace 90% of the orphans who have received help and support at Grace after their graduation have been able to adapt to a normal life. For orphans who has never had a family of they own, places like Grace Family Center must be worth one's weight in gold.

At Grace Family Center, orphans meet and spend time with adults who give them support and encouragement and help them develop into independent people with strong self-worth. The staff, at the project, prepare an individual plan for each young person who comes to it. The work is based on Christian principles. They live and work in an environment where they can meet and know the saving grace of Jesus. Even if the work at Grace Family Center is very successful. They are in a desperate need of money so that they can continue with their important job.

Maybe it's you who read this article that shall provide an economic miracle so that Grace Family Center can continue with their important work among the least of our brothers and sisters.

Maybe it's you who read this article that shall provide an economic miracle so that Grace Family Center can continue with their important work among the least of our brothers and sisters. Star of Hope USA concentrates their efforts on different countries than Russia. However if you wish to donate they will be happy to funnel your gift to Grace Family Center. Click the following link if you want to donate money via Star of Hope: Grace St. Petersburg

"Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done". - Proverbs 19:17

"We can find Calcutta all over the world, if you have eyes to see. Everywhere, wherever you go, you find people who are unwanted, unloved, uncared for, just rejected by the society - completely forgotten, completely left alone. That is the greatest poverty of the rich countries." - Mother Teresa

Klick the following link if you want to see the pictures in the slide-show on your cell phone or on your pad: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chasid68/sets/72157633493146234/

Text and Photo © Mikael Good, All Rights Reserved

Grace is a thought that can change the world

Grace can be a name of a girl. Grace finds beauty in every face. Grace finds goodness in everyone. Grace is a thought that can change the world. Grace is also the name of a Russian Orthodox Family Center in St. Petersburg.

When I visited Grace Family Center in march 2011, it was like coming home to my own family. Taking photos at Grace was like taking photos of my own family and not of strangers. For orphans who have never had a family of they own, places like Grace Family Center must be worth one's weight in gold. Even if it´s one of my hallmarks to make people feel comfortable in front of my camera, it usually take a while for me to get the pictures that I want. But at Grace that comfortable feeling was right there as soon as i crossed the doorstep.

The work at the Family Center is very successful and according to Valentina who is the volunteer director at Grace the majority of the orphans and young mothers who have received help and support at Grace has been able to adapt to a normal life. The statistics for other orphans who didn´t get the same opportunities are very dark. Only 10% of them can adapt to a normal life and many of them end up as criminals, prostitutes or homeless.

Although the work at the Family Center is very sucessful, they are in a desperate need of money so that they can continue with their important job among all the orphans and young mothers that are in their care. For the volunteers at the Family Center. Grace is not just a thought that can change the world. Grace is something that they live, breathe and share.

The trusted NGO Star of Hope, USA concentrates their efforts on different countries than Russia. However if you wish to donate they will be happy to funnel your gift to Grace Family Center. Click the following link if you want to donate money via Star of Hope, USA: Grace St. Petersburg

You can read more about the important work at Grace Family Center here: Saving Grace



Text and Photo: © Mikael Good 2011, 2013, All Rights Reserved

Saving Grace - How to make a good investment

Over 2000 of the verses in the Bible encourages us to support orphans, poor people, widows and those who are oppressed. God is clearly on their side! But which side are you on? Grace Family Center in St. Petersburg are on the same side as God, and they work hard to help young people in need. But they are also in a desperate need of new investors so that they can continue with their important job among the least of our brothers and sisters.

When young people leave institutions in Russia (at age 18) they encounter multiple problems. Many are met with various types of prejudice because they come from an institution, they have no adults who care about them and they often lack the everyday knowledge that others may learn in their family, such as washing clothes, cooking, managing household cash, finding suitable accommodations in which to live and more. Most have no parents or other relatives to turn to, so they often feel lonely and left out, and in reality, they are.

Valentina is The Director at Grace Family Center © Mikael Good 

The Family Center is located in a apartment at a Russian Orthodox monastery in St. Petersburg. The volunteers at the family center works closely with priests and nuns from the monastery. The work that they do is really remarkable and most of the orphans and young mothers that come in their custody receive the support and the training that they need so that they can live ordinary lives. When I asked Valentina who is the director about the recipe for their successful work at the Family Center she answered:
- Love and kindness is something that we all need. It's also something that we want to teach at Grace, We also know that we need to talk a lot with the orphans to teach them to love and enjoy each other.

At Grace Family Center young people meet and spend time with adults who give them support and encouragement and help them to develop into independent people with strong self-worth. The staff, at the project, prepare an individual plan for each young person who comes to it. The work is based on Christian principles. They live and work in an environment where they can meet and know the saving grace of Jesus and become part of God's great family. Despite that Valentina and the other volunteers does everything that they can for the orphans and the young mothers at Grace they feel uncomfortable about the situation. When I spoked with Valentina, she said with tears in her eyes:

- When I see that the needs are so great as they are, it feels as I do not do anything at all. I know that there are so many people who need our help, and it is difficult to have to refuse people since our resources are not sufficient. But I know that God will provide us with more resources when the time is right.

The work at the Family Center is very successful and according to Valentina, the majority of the orphans and the young mothers who have received help and support have been able to adapt to a normal life. The statistics for other orphans who didn´t get the same opportunities is very dark, only 10% of them can adapt to a normal life and many of them end up as criminals, prostitutes or homeless. But despite the very positive result at Grace, one of their major sponsors decided to end the cooperation with the Family Center at the end of year 2013. The reason is that they want to concentrate all its activities to other parts of the world. The decision to end the cooperation creates great economical problems for the Family Center who already stuggles with a strained economy. And it will be difficult for the Family Center to maintain their important work. They are really in a desperate need of a economical miracle.

Perhaps it is one of you who read this article that shall provide the economical miracle that is needed? One of the best investments that you can make is to invest your money in the least of our brothers and sisters. I believe in miracles and I also believe that it´s very important that Grace Family Center can continue their work among the least in Russia. I believe that their methods can be a role model for other Orthodox Family Centers in Russia to follow. I also believe that the Family Center have a key to a revival in the Russian Orthodox Church and that this revival can affect millions of Russians. Dosen´t that sound like a really good investment to you?

Click the following link if you want to donate money via Star of Hope, USA: Grace St. Petersburg 

Star of Hope, USA concentrates their efforts on different countries than Russia. However if you wish to donate they will be happy to funnel your gift to Grace Family Center. 

"Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward them for what they have done". - Proverbs 19:17 

"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me". - Matt 25:40



Text and Photo: © Mikael Good, All Rights Reserved

There was a girl named Lisa

Imagine that you are 15 years old. Your mother recently drank herself to death and your father is hospitalized and don´t remember you. The baby that you gave birth to has been taken away from you by a snotty midwife. You have been betrayed by the society and all the people that you trusted and you are completely left alone. You start to believe that there´s only one way out from your misery. But when the darkness surrounds you. You grab the last straw and is dragged back into the light by people who really cares about you.



Lisa is in her third trimester when I first meet her in her apartment located in a small town about 25 km south of St. Petersburg, Russia. She lives in the apartment on the weekends and during school holidays. The apartment is in terrible shape and it smells strongly of sewage and mold. Lisa gathers her things and are packing them in a large bag. In about a week she will give birth to her second child and move into the Family Center Grace in St. Petersburg. Just six months ago was Lisa alone, left, and in total decay. She had been betrayed by all those who were closest to her and the few adults that she had confidence in had turned their back to her.

     

Lisa grew up in a troubled family. Her mother and father were addicts and they did not care very much about their youngest daughter. When other parents followed their children to school, Lisa walked by herself. When she came home from school she had to cook her own meals and wash the few clothes she had. From the kitchen window she could see the other kids run around and play in the yard and she dreamed of being able to be with them and play. Her alcoholic parents finally lost custody of her and when Lisa was 13, she ended up in an orphanage. It was very difficult for Lisa who had to take care of herself all of her life to fully self-adapt to the ever waited and monitored life at the orphanage and she tried to stay away from the orphanage as soon and as often as she got the chance.

     

When Lisa just turned 14 her mother died of alcohol abuse and in grief after her, Lisas father drank bad vodka and had such severe brain damage that he became unresponsive and was placed in a nursing homes. Lisa, a precocious and looked much older than her 14 years met with Maxim, a young man from Tajikistan. They fell in love, but with no sex education Lisa soon became pregnant. The staff at the orphanage advised her to have an abortion but Lisa and Maxim refused. When Lisa was only 15 years old her son Roma was born. She wanted to care for and raise him, but she was not of age and Roma was taken from her and placed in another orphanage.

With support from Grace Family Center she retained the custody of her daughter. At Christmas last year i got the joyful news that Lisa, thanks to the support from Grace Family Center had regained custody of her son Roma. The family is now living together in the small apartment at the family center. The idea was that Lisa and her two children would move into the apartment, which she inherited from her parents in a Kolzhos area a couple of mil south of St. Petersburg as soon as she came of age. She will be invited to stay on Grace until she can support herself and her two children.

Grace Family Center was able to raise enough money to renovate Lisas apartment. The condition of the apartment is so much better today then when I first saw it. It´s clean and you can´t se any signs of the large mould colonies and the spider web on the walls and the smell from the kitchen and bathroom is fresh and clean. For me it´s a miracle. My first impression of the apartment when I first walked into it in mars 2011 was that it would be better to sell it. Cause the cost of renovation would be far to big. But now it´s like a completely different apartment and the administration has also did necessary repair to the stairway of the building.

     

From september 2012 Lisa decided to finish her studies to be a confectioner at the vocational training centre in St. Petersburg. Her children shall attend a day-care center in the area. Lisa wishes she could live five more years at the family center, but she needs to finish her studies first. It will be hard for Lisa to first bring the children to the day-care center and then travel the long way up to the school in St. Petersburg. But she is motivated and I believe that nothing can stop her. She will come to Grace for a weekend per month and that is something that she asked for.

      

Early in 2013 Lisa decided to follow Jesus and become a Christian. Lisa is doing great in upbringing her kids, the father of the children works in St. Petersburg. He rents an apartment there with some friends and sometimes he visits his children and bring them food and presents. Sadly he don´t seem to be that interested in living a family life. But we hope and pray that he will soon change his mind. Lisas older sister who also lives in the apartment with Lisa and her children, stopped drinking, she has a proper work and she helps Lisa whenever she asks.

     

Lisa and her children will need lot of support in the future and Grace will continue to help and support her within the framework of Grace Family Center-Mothers project.

Click the following link if you want to donate money to Grace Family Center via the trusted NGO:s Star of Hope, USA: Grace St. Petersburg and Big Family Mission For Orphans



Click the following if you want to see the pictures in larger size: http://www.flickr.com//photos/61029780@N06/sets/72157632319392145/show/

Text and Photo: Mikael Good