MAY 2023: IMPACT FOR LIFE

Vladut used to sit on a chair in the corner, not wanting to have anything to do with school work or learning.

Vladut with Paula, MWB Child Sponsorship Coordinator in Romania, in 2016

[ABOVE] Vladut with Paula, MWB Child Sponsorship Coordinator in Romania, in 2016]

Now 13, Vladut has grown up in poverty in a Roma village in Danes, Romania. Here there are many people with little education and access to only low-wage jobs, if they are able to find work at all. Children are often born into homes where there is a sense of hopelessness and resignation about the future, and they drop out of school early, just as their parents  did.

“School was something that Valdut found very hard when he first started, and he continued to find it difficult for a long time,” said Paula, our MWB Child Sponsorship coordinator in Danes.

Vladut was enrolled in our Sponsorship program in 2016, and when he started attending our After-School Care Club, he struggled just as much as he did in school.

“Vladut never knew how to express what he felt; he had difficulties understanding his work, and needed more time to keep up with it,” Paula said.

Once he started receiving more of our attention, he began to blossom in front of our eyes. He’s now in sixth grade and doesn’t need that much help anymore; he likes trying to figure things out on his own.”

[ABOVE: Paula with Vladut now in 2023]

SUPPORTING CHILD DEVELOPMENT

Vladut knows he needs to study hard for his dreams to come true and he does his best, even when learning his most difficult subjects.

Some of the children in the community are fortunate enough to have parents who care about education, and accept all the help they can get to make sure their children reach their potential.

Vladut’s mother always valued his education and when MWB stepped in to help, she was very grateful.

Vladut said, “The help I have received from the Mission has made me better at my studies, and I like school more. It’s helped me through tough times when I didn’t understand why I need to keep trying or why education is so important.”

Paula said, “I am more than certain that if not for Mission Without Borders investing in our community children’s lives, by supporting the After School program and equipping children like Vladut with all the school supplies they need, 80% of them would have given up on education a long time ago, or would have maybe never even started school.”

Parents in the community are more than grateful for the Mission, which for most is the only way they are able to keep their children in school.

“We want to send a big, big thank you to all the sponsors out there,” Vladut’s mother said.

Vladut added, “I promise I will cherish their support, and do everything in my power to study hard and become the doctor or pastor I dream of becoming.”

Thanks to our supporters, children like Vladut are no longer feeling defeated in the classroom, or dropping out of school altogether. Instead, they are receiving the encouragement and support they need, as well as practical help like school supplies and After-School tutoring & mentoring.

With your help, we can reach more children like Vladut, helping them to dream big dreams for the future, and work joyfully towards their goals.

Learn more about our Child Sponsorship program HERE .

INSPIRING ROLE MODELS

Hena (14, pictured above) is just a teenager, but has wisdom far beyond her young years. Her family has endured a lot of hardship, and are enrolled in our Family Sponsorship program. We are blessed to be working with them to help break the cycle of generational poverty.

She has been to summer camp twice already, and dreams of becoming a volunteer herself some day. Her fondest memories of camp include the people she met there, and learning how to respect others, and how to get along with different people with different opinions.

She made a lot of new friends at camp, and is in contact with two of them throughout the year. Hena said, “When I look at all the Mission volunteers and staff, and see their relationship with the children and the way they treat each other, I would like to be just like them one day.”

She is already thinking about which skills she will be able to pass on to the younger generation when she becomes a volunteer.

RETURNING THE FAVOR

Sara (22, pictured above, with some girls in her summer camp group last year) grew up in a single parent home in Bosnia-Herzegovina that struggled with poverty, and as a child loved going to our summer camps. Now a third-year student with an international scholarship at the University of Florida, Sara has a bright future ahead.

She will never forget the impact the Mission has had on her life, and even though her summer holidays are short, she has volunteered at summer camp for the past three years.

Sara explained that she enjoys being a volunteer even more than she enjoyed camp as a child.

“Those days always recharge me for the rest of the year.”

She added, “As a camper, I felt extremely grateful for the camp experience, the staff, and all the new friends I made … and so, to return the favor, I want to volunteer.”

“I want to help and be involved in the same way others did for me. The campers, even if lively and unruly, are great kids, and their innocence and enthusiasm always serve as a great reset from the difficulties of life. They also motivate me to return the following year.”

MAKING AN IMPACT FOR LIFE

All the children we work with in Eastern Europe come from different backgrounds, with their own stories to tell … but what they all have in common is the love they have in their eyes when speaking about what the Mission has done in their lives.

These are children who need the chance to make friends and develop social skills; others who have a lot of responsibilities at home and need a rest, and time for themselves. Then there are those with worries, who need time to look at things from a different perspective. Ultimately the only thing that matters is that they all receive just what they need when enrolled in our programs, whether it be After-School Care or Summer Camp.

Leaving children and families in a better state than when we first met them, and giving them the tools needed for their everyday life, so that they can be stronger and have a brighter future to look forward to, are all things we are working hard for.

Will you help us today? Would you consider sponsoring a child (just $40 a month), or perhaps a one-time special donation towards our general program fund?

Thanking you in advance for your investment in the life of children from poverty in Eastern Europe! You are allowing us to give these children a new paradigm to live by … with an impact that will literally last their entire lives!

 

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