Support Indigenous Adoption in Ukraine

"God bless every family who desires to adopt. It's an amazing ministry to children!"
-Slavic & Natasha, adoptive parents from Ukraine


Slavic & Natasha | An Adoption Story from Ukraine from Lifesong for Orphans on Vimeo.

Slavic & Natasha adopted their daughter shortly before her 13th birthday. When they arrived home, they asked her what she wanted for her birthday. Her answer? "I have the biggest gift of all. I have a mama and a papa!" 

Alex & Tatiana's family

Alex & Tatiana adopted 2 boys from their local orphanage in 2009. In 2012 they adopted 3 girls with special needs. In April of this year they began the process to adopt 2 more boys.

 
"We totally understand the nature of the challenges ahead of us, but we need the Lord's mercy and support of our brothers and sisters along the way. Thank you for being the hands and feet of the Lord in supporting our journey.

This path is beyond our physical abilities but with God all things are possible."

Slavic & Natasha and Alex & Tatiana represent a growing number of families in Ukraine who are sensing the need and obeying the call of God on their lives to adopt.

Adoption Without Borders is an intentional program linking like-minded families and churches in the USA with Christian families in the Ukraine who are seeking to adopt. People from the USA with a heart for orphan care support families in Ukraine to adopt children from the Ukraine.

The system is already in place and working well. For over 7 years, the Lifesong Ukraine team has assisted couples in adopting (or life-long fostering) over 160 orphans. Excellent pre- and post-adoption training and support is in place and positive relationships with state-run orphanages, local government, district courts, and local churches in the Izume, Kharkov, and Zap regions of Ukraine are well established.

The goal of indigenous adoption in Ukraine is not only to recruit Christian families who God is calling to adopt, but to equip them as well. In many cases, Christians are able to equip Christians in other countries to adopt with fewer hurdles than Christians are able to internationally adopt.

"Love and care provided in a family surpasses it all. The biggest need of a child is to have a loving family." -- Slavic & Natasha

Please join us in praying for Adoption Without Borders and all the families like Slavic & Natasha and Alex & Tatiana in Ukraine and around the world who are working together to make this amazing partnership possible.

www.lifesongfororphans.org

Learn more about indigenous adoption in Ukraine

What Made Roman Smile Again

This past Christmas season was extra special for a young man in Ukraine. A 19-year-old young man named Roman.Unfortunately, at a very young age, Roman lost both of his parents. He was sent to an orphanage and later met local Christians who minister to children and young adults within the orphanage walls and after they age out. 

Roman is a very curious kid by nature. He has asked many questions about life, about people, and about God. Another characteristic about Roman anyone would quickly notice is that he would rarely smile, displaying a tight-lipped frown on a somewhat gloomy face. Knowing the hardships of life he had faced, it didn't come as too much of a surprise.

This past September, as he entered a tech school to become a builder, he was invited to attend a Bible Study at a Lifesong Transition Home. He gladly accepted and started to attend. Although, he wasn't quite as quick to accept the invitations that were offered to attend church.The Lifesong staff started to pray for his repentance, as they sensed he was seeking the Lord.

As the staff continued to get to know Roman better, they discovered that his lack of smile had a reason behind it. Roman didn't have any front teeth! Our staff connected him to a charitable dentist who helped Roman at a minimal charge to bring his smile back. And guess what? Roman decided it was time to start smiling again. Shortly after, right around Christmas, he began to walk in fellowship with God, believing in Jesus as his Savior! And now, as you can see in the picture above, he hasn't stopped smiling!

Thanks be to God for drawing this young man to Himself! Please pray for Roman as he starts his walk with Christ, that He would be filled with the Spirit and walk in His Truth!

Learn more about the lives changing in Ukraine at www.lifesongfororphans.org/countries/ukraine.

Ukraine Orphans Become Pawns in Civil Conflict

Children from Donetsk orphanage gather to speak to journalists in the city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Monday, July 14, 2014. The Donetsk People's Republic want to take about 130 orphans living in a Donetsk orphanage and send them to Russia.

By BALINT SZLANKO of Associated Press

DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — Tamara Popova and her fellow orphans are adamant: They don't want to go to Russia. The separatist gunmen running this eastern Ukrainian city aren't asking. They're giving orders.  As fighting between insurgent and government troops closes in on the city, the 130 or so children living at Donetsk Orphanage No. 1 find themselves in the middle of a tug of war.  The insurgents say the children will be safer in Russia. Ukraine wants to move them to facilities in government-held territory, at least until the fighting dies own. It says taking them outside the country would be tantamount to a kidnapping.  "Normal people would ask our opinion," the 16-year-old Popova said, as other orphans nodded in agreement. "We told them that this was against the law, that we have brothers and sisters here. But then they started to swear."

The orphanage has children from age 7 into their late teens. It's clean and well-ordered. Pictures of stars from the local Shaktyar Donetsk soccer team hang in one room. Another is decorated with a fairytale tableau. Girls' bedrooms are decked in pink wallpaper and hung with floral pattern curtains.
It's an image of peace undermined by the menace of violence. Men bearing automatic rifles arrived one recent day to lay down the law about moving to Russia, terrifying everybody.

Read entire article HERE.

Three Former Orphans to Climb Mt. Kilimanjaro

This February, three former orphans from Ukraine will take on a daunting feat—climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest free-standing mountain (19,341 feet) in the world.Sergei, Slava, and Andrei aren’t tackling Mt. Kilimanjaro for the adventure of it—they are climbing to promote adoption in Africa!  Over the past few years, these boys have seen a drastic increase in the number of adoptions within Ukraine, including themselves!  Through this incredible climb and by sharing their stories, they hope Christians in Africa will also be motivated to adopt.

To learn how to support this event, visit www.worldwithoutorphans.org/climb

One Ukranian Adoptee's Story

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Countdown to Orphan Sunday - 2 Weeks Away!

2013 Special Broadcast from Ukraine

This year, we will journey to Ukraine for a special Orphan Sunday event.  God is moving across the Eastern Europe, and many hearts are being moved for the orphan.  We are witnessing a great awakening in the Ukraine church to foster care and adoption, as well as improved orphan care.  Our team will film and produce an Orphan Sunday broadcast, suitable for viewing for Orphan Sunday events (with subtitles and voice over, some content in English).  The broadcast will be webcast on Sunday, November 3, 2013 as part of the worldwide celebration of Orphan Sunday.

The program will include worship in Russian with subtitles, prayer for the orphan, testimonials, and snapshots of how orphans are being adopted, fostered and cared for in Ukraine and other nations

Please plan to join us via the Web for this special event!  We anticipate the broadcast to be approximately 35 minutes long, allowing for your event to show the program and also add your local elements or prayer.

We would like to thank our brothers and sisters at Ukraine Without Orphans for helping us produce this special event.

The program will be available for download and testing on November 1, 2013 on this page.  To register to receive it directly, click here.

Lifesong Farms Impact Lives

 

Lifesong Farms. Through the partnership and expertise from our friends at Plant Sciences, Inc., jobs have been created for in-county orphan caregivers and orphan graduates who are transitioning into adulthood. The goal of Lifesong Farms is to not only benefit these individuals with employment, but also to establish sustainable businesses to help fund on-going orphan care.

Enjoy these updates from Lifesong Farms in Zambia and Ukraine...

"OUR LIVES HAVE BEEN CHANGED..." // Zambia

Because of the faithful work of our 16 farm ladies, we have been able to grow and sell berries to local grocery stores. More important than the berries sales, it is exciting to provide employment opportunities for these women, many of them widows, who care for multiple children.

 

Learn more about Lifesong Farms-Zambia>>

BERRIES SOLD IN GROCERIES // Ukraine

Strawberries from Lifesong Farms-Ukraine are now in 5 different grocery stores in the Kharkov area. Sergei (pictured) and Andrei, both Lifesong graduates, have done an excellent job heading up this project. It's been amazing to watch these two young men, once behind orphanage walls, grow in their relationship with Christ and develop the skills to become successful businessmen. We are thankful to give opportunities to not only these two young men, but over 100 graduates who are employed through Lifesong Farms and other opportunities.

Learn more about Lifesong Farms-Ukraine>>

READ MORE...

First Harvest is In! - Lifesong Farms-Ukraine share pictures and thoughts from their first harvest this year. Read More

Brush to Berries - Listen in to how Lifesong Farms got started in Zambia. Watch Video

A Growing Potential - Orphan graduates, Andrei and Sergei, receive intentional and godly mentorship through Lifesong Farms. Read more

Sustainable Business - Learn more about Lifesong's sustainable business efforts in Ukraine, Zambia and Honduras.  Read More

Sasha's Story

The following story is from a ministry called "Doorways to Hope". Doorways to Hope works to enable local Christian families to bring orphans into their homes through foster care and adoption by providing material resources and ongoing support. I am moved by the fact that a family would adopt a dying child. I can't think of a greater act of compassion. Imagine a child being ushered into the arms of Jesus, not as an orphan in isolation, but surrounded with love, care, dignity and her forever family. I'm struck by the fact that adoption is no longer just a way to build a family, but for many, it's a response to God's mandate to care for the orphan. Let's pray together not only for this family, but all the families that God is calling to bring hope to orphans.

December 10, 2010

When Sasha was six years old, her mother, a sex worker, left her not only as an orphan, but also with HIV. Sasha was taken to a sanatorium where children normally stay for a month or so doing therapy. Sasha was there for four years, and she contracted tuberculosis of the bone and her HIV progressed in 4th stage AIDS. The doctors gave her a diagnosis of 2-3 years to live.

Sasha’s fate changed in 2009 when a case work accidentally found some of Sasha’s old paperwork that had been misplaced years before. Suddenly, the forgotten girl was no longer forgotten. Sasha’s sad story tugged at the heart of the case worker and the woman determined to do whatever it would take to find a family for Sasha. The first family she turned to was the Isaev family, famous across Ukraine for being the first family to adopt an HIV positive child. Sveta and Evgeny Isaev now have 7 HIV positive children living in their home. In September, 2009, the Isaevs went to meet Sasha in the sanatorium. They knew as soon as they met her that she would be the newest addition to their family.

The Isaevs brought Sasha home on a very special day—December 25th. Aside from being Christmas day, December 25th was also Sasha’s 10th birthday. The Isaevs took Sasha to a market and got her a Barbie with four dresses, and Sveta says Sasha was delirious with joy. She has fit in very well with their family, adapting to all of her new brothers and sisters.

Unfortunately, Sasha’s health continues to deteriorate. The doctors say that she likely only has a very short time left to live. Sveta and Evgeny are doing everything they can to brighten Sasha’s time in their family, while still holding on to hope for a miracle. They believe that God miraculously brought her into their family, and are praying that He will miraculously heal her physically so that she can stay with them. They ask for you to join them in prayers for their little girl, who has the right to life and a future.

For more information on Doorways to Hope and how you can help Sasha, visit www.doorwaystohope.org.