Visiting The Children of Ukraine

We have been in Kharkov for almost 3 days and it has been a busy time. So busy, it is easy to lose track of what day it is. The Lord has given us grace to not suffer jet lag and our energy is doing well.

We had the awesome privelege of seeing Green Forest Orphanage in Visoky once again.
It was a very special time to walk in there once again. This was the home of our daughters for many years. We met the lady who taught her to walk when she first arrived at the orphanage at the age of 4. She greeted us with tears of joy. We were able to share pictures that we plan to leave.

Dima had a lengthy conversation with one of the workers and I was fascinated that 6 little children sat in chairs quietly without a peep. We moved over to them to sit with them and give them some attention, and then they all started hugging us and asking questions.
One little boy Sasha, remembered us. He was young when we were there before, maybe 5.
He is now 7, so this is his last year. He saw pictures of Sarah and Erika and called them by thier Ukrainian names. He had little tears and was so gentle in his manner.
He hugged my arm and we communicated with smiles and hugs.
When we were leaving he began to quietly weep and my heart broke.
Oh how I hope this little guy finds a home. I do not know his situation, only that he needs to be loved.

We visited the Hostel for girls. They were offically going to be shut down because there are hot plates instead of a stove. We will be purchasing a stove for the girls and they will then be able to stay at the Hostel.

The girls also need a washing machine. The one they had is broken. They have been washing clothes in a sink. One of the workers has to wash heavy blankets and towels by hand. They really NEED a washer, so they will be getting one of those too.

We have visited the TB Sanitarium twice and have been able to present the gospel once again to the children. Mostly, we sat with them and loved them. We taught them "The Joy of the Lord is my Strength", in english, with motions and they seemed to like it. On our way out the gate, little Natasha was repeating our names over and over and telling us "good bye"! To which we replied "dos vadana".

This afternoon after this writing, we will be heading to another orphanage.

Tonight we plan to meet with a translator we met 2 years ago.... Misha.
We are looking forward to talking with him again.