Anyway Dasha is growing up as a very clever and talkative girl. She is fond of mom's make up and beautiful dresses. She comes to Grace UMC Sunday School and Spring Center as a safe place for her, a good place for education and watching that not all adults drink and quarrel.

We believe God will develop Dasha's intelligence and through church's help will give her a blessed future both to her and her family.

At Spring center Katya comes every day. She is very active at many art activities and here you can see her making a painting on glass work. At Grace UMC Katya comes to Sunday School and takes part at the theatre drama activity and choir. When she is here she feels herself much better and safer. She learns to forgive her parents...

Sasha often feels lonely and ill-fated. He even tried a suicide once. Sasha needs much love and tenderness for every day of his life. He gets them here at Spring center and Grace church.

Support our children's program and you will help to Sasha and other over than 100 children like him.

The life in the family is really not good. Family members often quarrel with each other because of the bad financial situation and really bad living conditions. The boys have great problems at school. Lenya has run away from home for many times and the police found him. Lenya does not trust the adults and it took time for Spring Center staff to find the way to his heart. Stas is a very active and tender boy, he wants love and care.

Both boys are very afraid of being sent to the children's home because their mother is not really interested in children's bringing up. Stas and Lenya have already experienced staying  at the children's home and now only the Spring center staff continues working with this family helping the boys to stay at home.

Ophelia is a very clever and talkative girl. She likes to play the dolls and imagine herself cooking a dinner or cleaning the house. She is more brave than Ira but her parents also were deprived of parents rights because they had a raw treatment to Ophelia. 

On the picture we got the moment when the girls are having snack at Spring center. They need food, hearth and love of people around. You can support our Food Program for children from at-risk-families. We feed over 65 children daily(7 days a week, 365 days a year)  with good hot meals with meat, soups, fruits and etc. Children can eat as much as they want and as often as they need.

We met Liza in summer 2007 when she came to our camp. She is a very energetic girl from a family where all family members are alcoholics. If you look attentively at her face you will notice a scar which she got a few years ago when both of her parents were drank and did not look after her. She broke the mirror and cut her face. When she came to the camp all her clothes was dirty and had a smell of smoke. She also was very hungry- probably the hungriest person in a camp. Our 5 times meals were not enough for her. She was ready to eat 10 times a day. Liza could not read and write well. Some times she was very scared and aggressive.

But God with His Love makes wonders in Liza's life. In UM children's center she gets hot meals every day. She has got extra studies on math, reading, Russian and English here. Liza's school teacher started praising her not only quarrelling. We helped Liza to go through the medical examination. What does Liza like do most in center? Music, dancing and Bible lessons especially!

The life of this little girl has only started to be changed, she needs so much love, she needs a future with hope.

You can help Liza and many other kids like her with sponsoring  meals, activities, medical care and many other needs these children have.

Now you can find Liza on many of our News pictures: choir, theatre plays and etc. Unfortunately Liza's family members still drink much, in conditions if the financial crisis in Russian economics Liza's grandma who was the only breadwinner in the family stayed without job. Liza still needs your support and prayers.

Alexandra was invited to center Spring by her friend 2 years ago. Alexandra lives with her grandma. Her parents divorced many years ago and are alcoholics. Her mother sometimes lives with Alexandra but most time she spends somewhere outside. When Alexandra came to us she was very aggressive. She was full of pain. Her grandma has got 5 adult children and all are alcoholics.

People of Grace UMC do not want Alexandra to follow her relations' way. We want Alexandra to  be a happy child with a good future. A future with hope.

Alexandra is growing up and we can see how God transforms her heart step-by-step. She still has much of deep mortification and distrust to adults but God heals her wounds. Alexandra tries out at solo singing at the church choir and she has got much more success at school program. 

You can continue praying for Alexandra's mother who still drinks and leaves Alexandra for many weeks and months. 

Last Fall a school teacher brought us a boy named Sasha. He looked very shy and quit. His teacher told us that Sasha's mother committed suicide 2 years ago and since that time he lives with grandma. And nobody knows where his father is.  Sasha studies at school badly and it is a permanent source of his affliction. In fact when he only came to us he was not interested in anything in this life.

After a few months in a center he started smiling. He even sometimes lets himself behave not very well. But we are glad that he becomes a usual child. He needs so much love and time. He found new friends here. Center's staff helped Sasha's grandma to collect papers and find information about his father. There is also such a long way before him- the whole life. The life which can be changed for the better, transformed with God's Love through you...

In April 2008 we learnt that Sasha's father perished.  Sasha became an orphan.

Sasha's grandma is now at the process of Sasha's adapting. Saha also needs help in getting a permanent residence in St. Petersburg since now he is also considered a homeless. Spring Center staff is now working to help in these two questions so important for Sasha's life.

Ira and Pavel are sister and brother. Here on this picture they are in our camp and look happy.

In their family there are 11 children. Their family situation is very difficult. Their mother drinks and their father is a drug taker. Family lives in poverty. Pavel who has not finished school yet, has to work and that's why he's got problems with education. In a center he gets extra studies on math. It gives him a chance to pass the exams.

Ira comes to center with her other 3 brothers. It's a great support for children that they can get meals here. They are involved in many activities like crafts, music and sport. Center is a safe place for them, their second home. It helps them to stay away from street.  

Pavel is now 19. He graduated from school and is searching for a job now. It is a very difficult time now in Russia for the young people. It is very difficult to find a job. And of course Pavel needs to go to college to get a profession.  

Ira is now 13. She is a very nice and care needy girl. Ira is the most emaciated girl at her school class. She often gets sick and has problems at school program. It is all a result of the killing atmosphere in her family. Her father drinks, takes drugs and brawls regularly.

Spring Center staff has helped Ira to get a registration for the permanent residence and get a medical insurance. Spring Center is often the only place for Ira to eat. We also help her with medicines, clothes and school program understanding.

It takes years to transform a child's life sometimes but this is worth while