SPU: We went on the boat with the kids in Novgorod!

The past couple of days have been filled with fun adventures and awesome memories continuing to be made. Yesterday, our team began the day with a skit about “How to Cope” – one of the most serious and important topics we’ve talked about with the kids yet. It is encouraging to see them continue to react to what we’re trying to teach them, and even the smallest ones have input to give and stories to share. After making journals with the kids, we left the TB center early yesterday because of the fact that we hadn’t showered in five days! … Continue reading

SPU: Second week of camp at TB Center in Novgorod.

Oh goodness! We can’t begin to comprehend that we’ve been at the TB Center for a week and a half already. Each day brings more and more joy to us all. These beautiful children have completely stolen our hearts. We fall in love with them more and more each day. On Monday, we had an excursion with the kids outside of the TB Center. We toured two museums that showed us some of the history of Novgorod through Art.  Afterwards, we walked to a park. On our way we passed a little amusement park with carnival like rides. The kids … Continue reading

SPU: Camping on the Gulf of Finland!

Dear family and friends! We are now camping off the Gulf of Finland at the beautiful campsite that sits just a few steps from the beach. We love it here. We arrived two days ago after a two hour drive through the country side of Russia. After setting up our things in our tents we each got paired up with a disabled youth and a trained staff member, who we are working with as their assistant. So far it’s been great! The teens, some of them in wheelchairs, have been enjoying the camping experience as much as we have. We’ve … Continue reading

SPU: First week of camp at the TB Center in Novgorod

Greetings from the Novgorod team! Here’s a little update from each team member! Adrienne: Hello from Novgorod family and friends!!  Today was day 4 of our VBS with the kids, and I can’t fully express my love for each and every one of them. Their energy and joy is contagious, and I can’t get enough of their hugs. I could seriously go on for days about each of them. Not only are the kids wonderful, but this place is amazing as well. It already feels like home even though we’ve only been in Novgorod for a week (not to mention … Continue reading

SPU: Today we said goodbye to the little ones…

Dear Family, Friends and Loved Ones, Time for our weekly update and we couldn’t be more excited to share about our experiences at the Baby HIV Orphanage. We apologize that we have been quiet for a few days, but fortunately our time has been well spent and we have so much to share! While Monday was a little shaky with us being introduced to the children for the first time, Tuesday we established what would be our weekly routine. We have been lucky to have an apartment opened up to us for us to stay in and have been treated … Continue reading