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8am

Leaving Lejasstrazdi and Inčukalns

It’s been over a week since I left Lejasstrazdi. It wasn’t until after we had left the orphanage that I realized how special it was. It seemed more like a big family than an institution. Most of the children are able to take care of themselves, so the younger kids get a lot of personal attention from the caregivers as well as from the older teens in the orphanage. The older kids would play with Violeta and Ruslans and they always had a caregiver sitting next to them at meals (until Violeta became my “little friend,” so she sat with me). Dace and Madara told us later that Lejasstrazdi is very unique and probably one of the best orphanages in Latvia.

We spent our last full day in Lejasstrazdi at the beach. About 45 people, including our group, kids from the orphanage (some we hadn’t seen very much in the last week), and caregivers along with their children, packed onto a bus to go to a camping ground by the Baltic Sea. We had so much fun… taking pictures… playing volleyball on the beach… a water gun fight with freezing Baltic water… and a Latvian-style cook out with sausage, potatoes, rye bread and traditional caraway cheese! It was a little weird to see the caregivers bringing their kids along. For them, caring for the children in the orphanage is a job so that they can support their own family. The orphaned children have their physical needs met by the caregivers—food, clean clothing, and a place to sleep—but they don’t receive love or affection. Anda, one of our translators, overheard a caregiver complaining that our group held the little ones too much and she didn’t want the 5- or 3-year-old to get used to being held. We had the same complaint at Inčukalns, the last orphanage we stayed at: the caregivers actually asked us not to hold the kids because they didn’t want the children to start asking them to be held.

It was a challenge to adjust to Inčukalns after having such a wonderful time and developing close relationships at Lejasstrazdi. When we had to leave Lejasstrazdi, there were a lot of tears. The hardest thing for me was to say goodbye (or “atā”) to Violeta. I had become quite attached to her over the week. I made a little book for her with drawings and phrases in Russian, her mother tongue: Исус любит тебя (Jesus loves you); Ты особенная (you are special); Принцесса (princess); and Я люблю тебя (I love you). She and her younger brother, Ruslans, were taken away from their parents not too long ago because their father is really violent and abusive and their mother is an alcoholic. The mother is going through treatment so that she can get her kids back, but Helena, the director, commented that in all the years she’s run the orphanage no parent has ever made a lasting change so that they could keep their children. They will improve for a little bit, but fall back into old patterns and lifestyles after a short time. It’s sad, but what can you expect? People can not change their lives without the power of Christ working in them. We are all lost causes without His saving grace.

When we arrived at Inčukalns, Jeannene, Ramie, Leslie, and I were still a little sad about leaving Lejasstrazdi, but excited about what God had in store for us in the week ahead. Our visit was the first time any team from Buckner had worked with the kids in Inčukalns, so there were a lot of unknowns. “We are flexible!” became our team’s motto after encountering numerous schedule changes and surprises the first half of the month, but we were still somewhat shocked when we discovered that the many of the kids at Inčukalns have special needs. Some of the children have severe physical disabilities while many have Downs Syndrome and other mental disabilities. Inčukalns has about the same number of caregivers as Lejasstrazdi, but there were a lot more young kids and with special needs. They were really hungry for affection… the caregivers told us explicitly not to hold the kids, so at first we tried to honor their wishes. When one little girl, Karolina, reached up for me to pick her up, I hugged her and held her hands… until she pulled a chair over to me and stood on top of it just so she could be closer to me and wrap her arms around me. Since the caregivers took a break whenever we were with the kids, we just made sure they weren’t watching when we held the children.

We did VBS in twice every day: with the younger kids (up to age 6) including a few with special needs at 10 am and then again at 11 am for older kids with severe disabilities. We did crafts and played with all the kids together in the afternoon. The little kids loved the music and dances. A lot of these sweet children rock back and forth, especially when they’re singing or listening to music. They told us about this during Buckner orientation: it’s a comfort disorder because they don’t have someone who holds them or gives them affection on a regular basis. When we left the music on during craft time, a few children would be standing in front of the CD player rocking back and forth. Even when there was no music, I’d see kids sitting in a row, rocking their bodies back and forth without even noticing that they were doing it. As soon as one of us touched them they would stop and look at us, but if you took away your hand they started rocking again.

9am

My last two days in Lejasstrazdi were full of fun and joy, as well as heartbreak when we had to leave. On Wednesday, we went with all of the kids to the Cinevilla Studio backlot, which was built for the historical drama “Defenders of Riga.” Guys and girls dressed up as opposing armies for a “battle” of hide-and-seek. Unfortunately, the girls were the “bad” army, so we ended up losing, but it was a lot of fun!

After lunch back in Lejasstrazdi, we helped the Tate Springs group decorate for “Sam Bradley’s birthday party.” Mr. Bradley was with us for his 12th trip to Latvia and, a few years ago, started sponsoring a birthday party for the kids in the orphanage because most of them have never had a birthday the way we think of it. After singing Happy Birthday to all of the kids and enjoying some cake, we had a little carnival with face-painting, “tattoos,” a ring toss, and other games. A man from Tate Springs, Rick, reflected later how some of the older guys would play the ring toss and run over to Rick afterward like little kids to tell him how many times they won and the prize they got. They were so excited! It’s kinda funny to watch, but then you realize that these are sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds who have been forced to grow up way too fast. They still have a child’s heart and a lot of brokenness that can only be healed by Christ.

I’m short on time now since we’re about to leave Riga for the next orphanage, so I’ll write more later, but rejoice with us that Gatis, a 10-year-old boy who stole everyone’s heart, accepted Christ our last night in Lejasstrazdi. I was so blessed to be with him when he made his decision—it was incredible to see the Holy Spirit working as prayed to accept Christ!

Check out my pictures from Lejasstrazdi!

3am

šodien ir skaista diena!

Today was a beautiful day! Yesterday, we finished our VBS program in Lejasstrazdi. I think the kids really enjoyed it. I say “kids” but their average age is probably 15. There are two little ones, Violeta and Ruslans, but the majority is older. They have pretty tough exteriors… if you just saw some of the kids in pictures or met them walking down the street, you might see the chain necklaces and black-dyed hair and write them off as thugs. But then you would miss a lot: their big hearts, special gifts, and deep desire for affirmation and family love.

The theme of VBS was God has the power… the power to be thankful… the power to make us brave… to help others… to live forever… and the power to tell others about God. It’s a message that really resonated with Elīna, a ten-year-old girl with two younger siblings also in the orphanage here. She and Matiss, her brother, left for camp this afternoon, along with about 10 of the kids we’ve been spending time with this week. I was really sad to see them go, especially Eduards and Agnis, two boys that I really enjoyed getting to know. A lot of them, even the “tough” guys, cried as we hugged them goodbye and promised to pray for them. Matiss, however, was all smiles.

Helena, the orphanage’s director, told us that after they were on their way, Matiss began to cry and was very upset. His sister, Elīna, told him to read the Bible, because “it helps in crisis.” Mr. Bradley had just given all the kids a Bible the day before, but Matiss forgot his Bible, so Elīna gave him hers to read. Matiss, who has some ongoing issues, asked if God could really help with his problems. Elīna assured him that, yes, God will help him if he prays and reads the Bible every day. So Matiss read the Bible until he fell asleep. Helena, who is not a Christian, noticed that, upon reaching the camp, Matiss woke up and his face was bright and beaming. She was touched by the comfort and peace he received.

Prayer Requests:

A lot of the kids leave for the summer, for camps or exchange trips to other countries in Europe, but two of the boys, Maris and Lauris, weren’t picked to go on any trips (because the host families choose who stays with them). They are disappointed, so pray that God will really use this time to work in their lives. They’ve both accepted Christ, but there is currently no support for them in Lejasstrazdi to disciple them or encourage them in their relationship with Christ. Pray that they would have and use the resources to grow in Christ.

Maris turns 18 in August. Usually, when kids age out, they are sent to whatever area of Latvia they were taken from and the local government provides them with low-income housing. Maris’ little brother, Kaspars, is about 8 years old, so he’s still going to be in Lejasstrazdi. Since Maris hasn’t finished school yet, it might be possible for him to stay until he graduates, if the local government here grants him an exception. Pray that the local government would be compassionate and make an exception for him.

Pray for Helena….that she would be tender to the gospel after seeing the changes in her kids.

1am

Lejasstrazdi

Labrit! (“good morning!”). It’s just before breakfast at the orphanage in Lejastrazzdi. My intern team has joined with a group from Tate Springs Baptist Church in Arlington for the next week and a half. They have been coming to Latvia for several years—Cora, the team leader from Tate Springs, has been here five times. Mr. Bradley, who is about to celebrate his 77th birthday, has been to Latvia twelve times and, starting a few years ago, throws a big birthday party for all of the kids every year since they don’t have birthday parties of their own. It’s really neat to see them continuing relationships with kids that they met years ago! The orphanage has about 30 kids. It’s quite a change from the day center because we’re with the kids all day, but it’s been really great so far. There are a few young children, but most of them are 10 or older.

Yesterday, we went to the school’s graduation. Five of the children from the orphanage were graduating from 8th grade. 8th grade graduation is a big deal because the next step is either secondary school, which focuses on languages, literature and history, or trade school, where the students prepare for a job in several different fields: auto mechanics, culinary, carpentry, etc. It was really special… first of all, Latvians love flowers. They bring flowers on basically every special occasion and, often, just because. When we met the Tate Springs group at the airport, almost everyone who was waiting carried a bouquet of flowers (except for the Americans… we’re a little slow to pick up on the customs!). And, of course, people receive flowers on their birthday. There are two special occasions when people get an especially large amount of flowers: graduation and their wedding.

At the graduation ceremony, the principal called each graduate’s name so they could step forward and receive their diploma, along with a rose. Then, while the student was still standing at the front, people from the audience, friends and relatives, lined up to give them flowers and congratulate them. It was so honoring—as many as 15 people went forward for each student, to appreciate them and the hard work it took to get to this point in their lives. There were only about 12 graduates in all, so the whole celebration didn’t last too long, but it was really neat to be a part of. Afterwards, we came back to the orphanage for a little graduation party and (after changing out of our nice clothes) a water balloon fight with the kids. It was a great time!

1am

Leaving Liepaja…

This morning, Ramie, Jeannene, Leslie, and I loaded up all of our bags into a mini van (which was quite a feat considering how much stuff we have!) and rode to Riga. Although we left a lot of craft supplies and humanitarian aid with the day center in Liepaja, it seems like our bags are still full. We met Daça and Madera at the Elefant Hotel in Riga, where we’re staying for the night, then went to the airport to meet the group coming from Texas.

Leaving Liepaja was a little harder than I thought. Yesterday was the first day of their VBS day camp, so we were with the kids all day. Their camp was really fun… Zanda and one of the women from the church performed a skit in the morning that went along with their theme of time travel. The “mad scientist” made a time machine that took everyone back to the creation of the world, with God creating the sun and the moon, animals, plants, and mankind. The woman who played the mad scientist is a single mother of seven. Her husband was really abusive to her and the kids, so, a little over a year ago, they left him and moved in with the pastor’s family until they could get on their feet. I don’t know how she does it, but they manage and all of her kids are really great!

Pastor Sergejs and his wife have five children. Sergejs’ life is a story of redemption: he used to be a bootlegger (which, in Latvian, is an “alkoholisku”), making and selling vodka illegally. His wife was a Christian, so she kept praying for him and told him that he was going to pastor a church someday. I’m not sure how he became a Christian, but he now pastors the Light of the Gospel Church in Karosta and is supported by Hope International Ministries (if you click on the link, notice the little girl in the first picture—Gela, a girl from the day center). Some of his old customers still come to him, but now they come for living water, not “fire water.” Zanda pointed out one man who helps everyday with the kids, keeping track of all the toys and outdoor equipment, that used to buy vodka from Sergejs back in his alkoholisku days. It’s such a powerful testimony to how God changes people and what could happen in the naval port as more people are touched by His love.

There were forty children signed up for the day camp, plus some younger kids whose parents were helping. Most of the kids were familiar, but there was one girl I hadn’t seen before: Elina, a pretty girl with dark hair and blue eyes. Elina was very quiet and polite, but she seemed a little removed from a lot of the activities. I asked Zanda about her later and she said that Elina kept asking when day camp was going to be over, so Zanda, wondering if she wanted to go home early, told her that she could take her home. Elina said no… she was asking because she was afraid it was going to end soon and didn’t want to go home. I had guessed that she probably didn’t have a very good home life because of what Zanda told us about her brother, Sasha, early in the week: when Sasha first started coming to the day center, he got into a lot of fights and was really a problem for the adults. Once, when Zanda broke up a fight between him and another child, Sasha started hitting her—she thought he hated her. A few weeks later, Zanda took him to the store with her because another adult was taking all the kids to the beach and didn’t think she could control him. As they we walking in, Sasha grabbed her arm and whispered: “Do you think we can we pretend that you are my mom?”

There are so many more stories I want to tell about! Zanda told us a lot… about the changes she saw in the kids after they started coming to the day center and, as the children prayed for their families, watching their parents come to Christ. Even though these children see so much brokenness and hopelessness in their neighborhood every day, they are so joyful! Yesterday, when we said goodbye, several of the children got up to wish us well and pray for us. It was so precious… truly a priceless moment! I’m praying that Zanda and Sergejs and the rest of the church will be able to continue their day center ministry next fall. Funding from Buckner goes to wherever a donor designates. Most countries have partner organizations or churches that specifically fund Buckner’s ministries there, but Latvia doesn’t, so they’ve been supported by leftover money in the budget until now.

Tomorrow morning we are going to an orphanage outside of Jelgava with the group from Tate Springs. They’ve been here several times, so I’m excited to learn from them and help their ministry with the kids there. Pray for us this week because the kids at the orphanage don’t hear God’s word on a regular basis like those at the day center. Jessica, who is on Buckner staff and leading the church group, told us that many of the older kids are realizing what their future is going to be like as an orphan. When they turn 18, that’s it… they have to move out of the orphanage and most of them don’t have anywhere to go. It’s important that they know the hope that Jesus offers!

4pm

“kra-sée-va-ya”

We’ve been learning a few words and phrases in Russian and Latvian (mostly Russian since that’s what the kids at the day center speak). “Privet” is hi… “spasibo” is thank you… “poshalusta” is please. And “krasévaya” is beautiful. (This is my simple Russian spelling—I don’t even know where to begin with the Russian alphabet!)

I’ve seen a lot of beautiful things this week. Yesterday morning, Zanda took us to Kuldiga, her hometown, which is also home to the widest waterfall in Europe. She had to make a few stops at doctor’s offices to get some paperwork complete for the day camp they are have at the center next week, so we were happy to tag along and see a little more of the country. The waterfall isn’t very high (only about 7 ft.), but it is wide… close to 400 ft (120 meters). It was raining yesterday, so we armed ourselves with umbrellas to stroll across the oldest brick bridge in Europe and see the waterfall. “Krasévaya!”

Today, we led the Bible study time for the kids. I found a little story based on 2 Corinthians 4:7 that we read to the kids (with Zanda translating) about a man who found a bag of clay balls on the beach. Thinking they were worthless, he began to toss them into the ocean, seeing how far he could throw… until he dropped one of the balls and it cracked open on a rock, revealing a precious gem! We talked about how God created each of us in His own image and how, because He has made us special, each person is a treasure. Too often, we just don’t realize it! I hope they understood the message… I think some of the kids were a little more interested in the plastic gems I had hidden in clay balls that I tossed out to them as we told the story!

We are in Liepaja until Tuesday, when we go to Riga to meet a group from Tate Springs Baptist Church in Arlington. They are coming for a week to lead VBS and a sports camp in an orphanage outside of Jelgava. We had lunch with Datza and Madera, the other women on Buckner’s staff in Latvia, today so we learned a little more about what we’ll be doing the rest of the time. I’m excited to go to the orphanage, but I’ll be sad to leave the kids here… there are a few that I want to bring home with me! They are definitely “krasévaya”!

3pm