Today some more of the Canadians were heading home so we stopped by the Chausy Orphanage so they could say goodbye and load up the van. Here is a shot of some of the kids getting addresses to keep in contact:
Here are two of the girls who always come to see me when I am at the Orphanage, Kristina and Sveta:
We stopped by the Chausy Hospital to deliver some handmade quilts and dolls donated by the wonderful 1000 Islands Quilt Guild. Here is a little girl picking a doll:
Here is a baby with a doll and a quilt:
A few of us went with Neil on some Guardian Angel Family visits. Here is a 14 year old boy with multiple challenges sitting on Rhona’s lap beside his Mom. Over the last few months he has lost considerable weight as he is having his teeth removed 3 at a time every 3 weeks. He has been having continual pain in his mouth and the only solution seems to be to remove his teeth. He is now down to 20 kg, half of his weight 6 months ago. This family is sponsored by the Brockville and Area Community Living Association employees and Rhona picked up a blender to help his Mom puree his food.
Another stop was at a family with a 17 year old multi-challenged boy. We brought ice cream and plenty of fruit as a treat for all of the children. Here are two of his sisters enjoying theirs:
Here is his mother feeding him some ice cream. He is sitting in a wheelchair that was donated by the Smith family of Brockville. His mother said that he loved sitting in this chair as it gives him a tray for all of his things:
Our next stop was at a family that is sponsored by employees of Shorewood Packaging (where I work). This was an excellent visit as Jhenya has seen great improvement in his health. He has a hole in his heart which caused him a lot of problems as a child. He is now 15 and seems to be getting stronger every year. He will travel to Minsk later this year for follow up tests to check on his progress. Jhenya is 15 now and loves to fish, one of the gifts given to him by a fellow employee was a really good fishing reel and he was very anxious to get out and try it out! Here he is with his Mom as well as Alex and me:
On our way back into Chausy we met Lena and Sasha (boy who has brittle bone disease and has been to Brockville) walking on the road. We stopped and had a chat … we will be going to their home tomorrow for a pancake dinner … I can’t wait!
Eric
great pictures Eric.