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Last summer a team of us put on a camp at the girls prison in Russia. It really
was quite an amazing time as you probably remember. We will be going back this
summer of 2009 , July 17th to July 27th to put on another camp at the prison and also at an orphanage from July 27th to August 5th. It's always an immense privilege to be a part
of what God is doing in Russia, and it is also quite an adventure.
The girls in the prison are between the ages of 16 and 22. A high percentage of
the girls are orphan children. We originally visited the prison 2 years ago and
got permission to put on a camp at the prison.
We have been doing so twice a year. Our goals are to communicate God's
love and to care for the girls at the prison and the children at the orphanage.
We want to meet their emotional and practical needs through group times and
various workshops and buying needed necessities. At the prison we will be building on the theme of our previous camps. The gifts and the camp mean so much to the girls,
particularly at Christmas since it is a difficult and lonely time in their
lives but also during the summer. Our goal is to alleviate some of that loneliness and distress of being in prison and to bring some of
God's love into their lives through these presents and the camp. The sole
Christmas present the 350 girls at the prison received last year was a stick of
good quality deodorant - and the girls were genuinely thrilled with it.
This year, Christmas 2009, we gave each girl at the prison a Christmas present
of a towel and a toothbrush and toothpaste (something they don't have or get ) - We also gave the 80 children at the orphanages a Christmas present. Much thanks to all of you who donated and helped this effort.
p.s Here is a list of what we spent on the girls gifts.
Gifts for 350 girls at prison and 80 children in orphanage ~ TOTAL:-$1,800
"and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday." Is 58:10
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