Sponsor update from Kandalaksha
24/01/2008
Report for sponsors from November 2006 to May 2007
At the moment there is a total of 77 children in the Village. 27 of them are pre-school children and the other 46 go to school. This year, 11 children finished the first class of school and 6 children already study at middle school. As well as general education schools, the children also attend music and art schools. Also, many boys and girls went to the school of Olympic reserves for naturbahn. As well as this, children take part in wushu, modelling and choreography. Six months ago in the Village itself, the ensemble "Window" was formed.
November was full of events in the Children's Village. On the 7th of November the SOS children visited the Pioneers Museum (scouts in the Soviet Union). The children learnt about the history of the creation of the pioneers’ organisation in Kandalaksha town, with its symbols and uniform. They were told about the town's activists, listened to pioneers' songs and looked at photos. The excursion was a great success.
Also, during the autumn school holidays, children from the Children's Village went to the Locomotive Depot after visiting its museum. There were several tours during which an Honorary railway man spoke to them about the creation of the locomotive depot in Kandalaksha. The children were able to not only look at the exhibits, but also to touch them. The excursion left the children with many strong impressions.
At the beginning of the month in the town of Apatiti in the Murmansk region on the radio station “Imandra”, the Children’s Village’s Director spoke for the first time on live radio about the life of the village, from its beginning up to the present day.
On the 26th of November, according to tradition in the Village, Mother's Day was celebrated. The children prepared in advance for this: they learnt songs, chastooshkas (comic songs with verses of two or three lines) and dances. As well as this they prepared surprise cards. On these cards, the children's palms were drawn, and the SOS-Mothers had to guess which hands belonged to whom. All the SOS-mothers did very well at this.
At the end of November - beginning of December, the ensemble "Window" gave two concerts in the Children's Village. Friends of the Children's Village's children were invited to the concerts. The children themselves prepared the invitations and gave them out to their friends and classmates. The ensemble "Window" also gave a concert in one of Kandalaksha's kindergartens where the CV's smallest inhabitants go.
On the 30th of December a New Year show was put on. Kandalaksha's creative group "Shaping of a Club" visited the Children's Village. They prepared a wonderful New Year performance for the children. As well as this, Father Frost (Russian Father Christmas) played the piano and saxophone for the children, and the children sang and danced in a ring around the New Year tree. At the end of the celebrations there was a brilliant firework display, and of course, none of the children went without New Year presents.
On the 16th and 17th of January, co-workers of a local nuclear power station again invited children from the Children's Village to visit them. The children accepted the invitation with pleasure. Workers there gave a small tour and told the children about the work of the station. The children always enjoy such excursions, and this time was no different - they went home very happy.
On the 21st of January there was the official opening of the naturbahn season. Many of the Village's children decided to take part in the sledge sport - naturbahn. On this day the season was officially opened and the first competition took place. The children enjoyed taking part in the opening. Nikita from Family House ¹12, Ekaterina from Family House ¹2 and another Ekaterina from Family House ¹9 took first place.
On the 28th of January an opportunity to try dog sledging was organised. Specially trained Husky sled dogs were brought from the town Polyarnie Zori and, for the first time in their lives, the children had the opportunity of riding in a dog sledge. Everyone really enjoyed this great event.
On the 15th of February there was an excursion to the control panel of Kandalaksha station. The Deputy Chief of Kandalaksha station showed the children around. The children were shown the station's working control panel. As well as that they were told about the professions of people who work on the railway.
On the 18th of February Shrovetide was celebrated and the families of the Children's Village said goodbye to winter. A bayan player was invited who kept everyone's attention with his merry playing. The children happily sang and danced in a ring, and played and had fun with all their heart. All the families made delicious pancakes with various fillings and with pleasure shared them with each other. At the end of the celebration a straw figure of winter was burnt.
On the 19th of February, friends of the Village from the company “SUAL-HOLDING” came to the Village to learn about the lives of our children. They brought presents for the Family Houses and the office. The families received microwave ovens, the children - toys, and to the office were donated new computers, a fridge, a washing machine, a lawn-mower and a water heater. On the 20th of February a concert was put on for Kandalaksha's children at the recreation centre, to which children from children's homes, kindergartens and the Children's Village were invited. At the beginning an illusionist performed for the children and caused them to cry out with wonder. Then the children watched a fairy-tale show performed by the theatre of the Northern Fleet. As well as this, everyone in the audience was given sweet prizes - bars of chocolate.
On the 23rd of February a festive concert was put on in honour of the Fatherland Defence Day. Girls from the Council of Older Children prepared it and carried it out themselves. Participants of the concert sang, danced and conducted several interesting games. After the concert there was a disco.
On the 4th of March, there was the traditional competition of snow figures. It was a lovely sunny day, and all the participants were in a festive mood. The children sculpted figures out of the snow with great pleasure and thought up interesting names for them. House ¹12, who built a proper Russian stove, was awarded the competition's grand prize. As well as this, children from this house together with their SOS-Mother thought up and performed a small sketch from the Russian folk fairy tale in which a stove was one of the main heroes.
On the 7th of March in the Children's Village's office a festival was put on, dedicated to International Women's Day and the anniversary of the SOS-Mothers’ First Day in the Village. On the 12th of March, a small concert for women was organised, to which the Children's Village's mothers were invited. After the performance, cartoons were shown for the children.
On the 28th and 29th of March, children from the Children's Village went together with their SOS-Mothers to an aqua park in the town of Kirovsk in the Murmansk region. The nuclear power station visited by the children in January, provided a big bus for this trip. This was a wonderful present for the Village's children.
On the 18th of April, Norwegian friends from the school of crafts "Pasviyu" visited the Children's Village. They visited family houses, and learnt about the children's life and pastimes. Then a concert was given by the ensemble "Window". After the concert one of the guests, the former director of this school, invited the children to take part in a small game and himself played the piano for them. At the end of the day the students and children drank tea together. As well as this, there was a discussion about what the students had expected to see in the Village and what they thought of it now they had actually seen it. The students were surprised by what they had seen, and happily shared their impressions.
It has become a good tradition for the Children's Village to send congratulations on the 17th of May - Norway's Independence Day, both to their Norwegian friends who helped to build the village, and to Princess Marta Luisa to mark this wonderful celebration.
CV Kandalaksha and SOS Russia would like to express their gratitude for warming hearts of the children in the most northern Children’s Village and hope that you will stay their friends for long coming years. We wish you and your families a lot of success in your lives.
Child sponsor letter from Lavrovo
This is a summer report 2007 of the Children’s Village Lavrovo.
There are 83 children in the CV Lavrovo now. Among them 11 children go to kindergarten and 69 are school children. In 2006 a second Youth Facility was opened in the town of Orjol, and seven youngsters have moved there. Eight boys and girls live in the first Youth Facility. In August 2007 four more adolescents will move to the Youth Facilities.
Youth Facility-2 is not situated in a block of flats like YF-1, but in a country house surrounded by a small piece of land. This is the first experience of creating a YF in conditions close to countryside ones. The youngsters have an opportunity to take care of the garden and the vegetable beds, and they do all small repair work in the house themselves.
This April the eighty third child was admitted to the Children’s Village - a five year old kid called Radion. The boy is so cute that everybody in the CV accepted and started loving him. Radion immediately became attached to his SOS Mother and doesn’t leave her for a minute. Among the other inhabitants of the CV, Radion took part in “subbotnik” (traditional cleaning of the CV territory after winter time which takes place every year).
Swetlana T, having finished a vocational college and got the profession of a cook-confectioner, made a decision to live independently and has left the CV. The CV calmly saw her off to adult life. Swetlana was always marked by good studies and behaviour and her SOS Mother and the Village Director are sure that Swetlana’s life will be successful.
Our school children finished the school year 2006-2007 well. Ljubov G and Anna K. got only excellent year marks, and ten children have got good and excellent marks. In September 2007 six more children will start their studies in the first form.
All the circles and clubs are still working regularly - the dancing club and the karate circle, the Orthodox Culture studying circle and the handicraft and modeling circles. The SOS children attend music and sports schools. In the CV psychological lessons and social-cognitive games for the elder children are held constantly. This year the topics of the social-cognitive games were as follows: My Dwelling, Friends and Neighbours, Temptation and Reputation. The SOS teenagers prepare for these games and then discuss these serious topics actively, often disputing themselves hoarse.
As every year, merry and interesting festivities were held - New Year’s Eve, Christmas, the Day of the Defender of the Fatherland (on that day competitions between SOS children and the cadet school pupils took place, then different kinds of weapons were demonstrated to the children), Pancake week (on that day there was a competition between the family houses for the most delicious pancakes and the highest pancake pile), April 1 - Fools Day, Easter, June 1 - Children Protection Day (on that day there was the Home Rule Day - the children took the roles of the Village Director, the Accountant, the teachers, SOS Mothers and Aunts, solving the global problems of improving school marks and understanding the way SOS Mothers cope with the house chores.
This winter the Children’s Village gained a new friend - a large telephone company. The company is ready to pay part of the running costs of the CV.
At the end of April the CV was visited by very important guests - the Belorussia SOS Children’s Villages delegation. The guests lived in the family houses and old friends met again (the CV Lavrovo football team was in Belorussia last year). A friendly football match was held between the Russian and Belorussian SOS teams. The Russian team won with a score 3:0. During three days the hosts and guests participated in entertainment, sport and cultural events. Football, excursions, a military-patriotic game, a disco - all this made the children’s friendship even closer.
And on April 9-15 the CV Lavrovo football team and SOS Russia Youth Facilities’ combined team went to the town of Volgograd to the Russian Championship on mini football. Our team won the Cup.
In June the elder CV children took part in a canoe voyage to the town of Kozelsk where one of the monuments of ancient Russian architecture is situated.
The SOS children will spend this summer in various youth camps of the Orjol region. Family houses 8 and 12 will go to the sanatoriums of the Tula region. Houses 2, 4, 9 and 11 have gone to the Ukraine to the Black Sea shore. A group of children (33) accompanied by teachers have also gone to the Black Sea to the town of Herson, and houses 1,3,5, and 10 have gone to the town of Geledgik.
The time is passing, and the children are growing. This year the CV will be 9 years old and that’s why the CV is starting to think about its 10 year anniversary. We hope that with your kind and generous help the Children’s Village will be working for many more years and children who have been put in difficult situations by life, will find a home, warmth of loving hearts and protection there.
Relevant Countries: Russia.