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MISSION TO RUSSIAN ORPHANS
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Russian orphans: child sponsorship that is different
Save the life of a Russian orphan! 3 million Russian orphans face a future of
drugs, alcohol, prison, prostitution, early death. Rescue an orphan! Our volunteers
in Russia provide the arms and legs of Big Family's ministry to orphans. Churches in
Russia are contributing part of the expenses, but you can help by partnering with one
of our volunteer teams.
Our child sponsorship program for Russia is different from most child
sponsorship programs. Unfortunately, because the orphans in our child sponsorship
program are in government-run facilities, we have little or no control over
communication with the children. Children are often moved from one orphanage to
another, and we no longer have access to information about the child. The directors
of orphanages (government employees) can change overnight, and our volunteers
may no longer be allowed to visit children at the orphanage.
Because of the difficult nature of having a child sponsorship program in Russia,
we now emphasize that our child sponsors are actually helping an entire orphanage.
We can still provide photos of an individual child to receive letters and prayers, but
we ask our sponsors to be aware that we could very easily lose contact with the child
because of circumstances beyond our control. We treat all orphans at each
orphanage the same, providing the same love, hugs, and care for orphans who have
and do not have sponsors.
Most of the larger child sponsorship programs do not attempt to work in
Russia because of the difficult and complicated infrastructure. In most child
sponsorship programs around the world, many of the children have families and
some form of contact with a church. For most of the children in our Russian child
sponsorship program, our ministers and church volunteers are the only adults the
children know outside the orphanage.
Our teams work mainly with older orphans, who will have little opportunity to be
adopted. We are not allowed to "preach" in orphanages, but volunteers are able to
talk about God in day-to-day conversations. Also, we have been allowed to hold
Christmas and Easter celebrations in orphanages, and talk about the true meaning of
these special days.
For those who wish to join with us as a child sponsor, we ask that you consider a
monthly donation of $15. Sponsors can join with us by donating as little as $5
per month on a regular basis. Sponsors can donate online or through the mail.
You will receive regular updates on the ministry of your sponsored volunteer team,
and may communicate with the team about their work with the children.
All contributions go to Russia to help rescue orphans. All administrative and
travel expenses for Big Family Mission are paid for by special donations. This
allows us to send 100% of donated funds for child sponsorship to Russia.
Work is done by Christian volunteers. A few examples of how Big Family helps
orphans:
- "Life celebrations" (birthday parties);
- Christmas gifts for the children;
- Socks, shoes, underwear for children;
- Beds, sheets, pillows;
- Fruit for the children;
- Eye glasses for children;
- Special treats
- Lots of hugs!
- One-on-one counseling and friendship
What's next? How can you help?
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