“Old Friends’ Home” - Valentina's Story
HOPE worldwide's Fellowship Club for the elderly, the “Old Friends’ Home” has been running for eight years already. The Club’s members meet twice a week, have tea, fellowship and celebrate holidays together. They also receive charitable donations in the form of groceries each month.

Valentina Ivanovna (photo, left side) has been a member of the club for many years. She is 83. Valentina’s father was forced to leave his home and move to Tomsk before her birth. He had three more children in Tomsk. In 1937 Valetina’s father was taken to the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs and later Valentina found out that her father was suspected of “organizing a Polish resistance”. After that Valentina never saw her father or grandfather again.

When WWII started Valentina and many of her peers left school and started working in factories making equipment for the war to help her country in such a difficult time. Valentina worked in the factory the entire war and afterwards she kept working there.

One time artists came to the factory to give a performance. One of the artists became Valentina’s husband. They met in the factory and got married a while later.

Valentina’s husband died in 1961. Four years later Valentina got married a second time and spent 25 years together with her new husband. Unfortunately, her second husband drank a lot and Valentina couldn’t handle his alcoholism and they eventually got divorced. Since that time she has been alone, and she simply worked in the factory until she retired. Now Valentina is a pensioner and many of her friends are gone.

But thanks to the Old Friend’s Home Valentina has many new friends, and she is very encouraged by this. Valentina tries not to miss even one meeting in the Old Friend’s Home.

International Women's Day
HOPE worldwide – Russia and the Marfino Municipality organized a festive family program devoted to International Women’s Day, March 8, 2009.

The Kids Club was crowded with people of different ages. Everyone came to congratulate their mothers, grandmothers, classmates and close friends for this event, and of course, to spend the evening together.

Sounds of the “bayan” met guests in the doorway of the Kids’ Club and later on a bayan-player entertained the guests for the entire evening!

Alena Sokol, a performer from the Moscow Circus, prepared plenty of surprises; she came with her trained animals and immediately won the attention and hearts of all present. Everyone was amazed when Lena put a real boa constrictor on her shoulders. Afterwards, everyone who wanted to was able to touch this exotic reptile and some of the bravest got to take part in a circus act with the giant snake and were able to experience what it’s like to be circus performer.

A variety of competitions prepared by the HOPE worldwide staff transformed everyone at the party from guests into participants in the holiday, which made the atmosphere joyful and fun.

“Toys”, a Children’s pop band, and “Sun Circle”, a children’s dance group, took part in the concert dancing and singing songs for the kids, which was very inspirational! Also, some of the handicapped women, who visit the HOPE worldwide-Russia Kids’ Club on a regular basis, prepared poetry to recite to all the children.

Every mother, grandmother and girl received flowers, a gift, and at the end of the evening the table was filled with a variety of delicious food and hot tea was waiting for everyone!

Time went by so quickly that nobody noticed when the end of the holiday arrived. It was a truly great day!

Our dear and beloved women - May your lives always be filled with the kindness and love of those around you!

Moscow Children's Sports Fest
The 10th Childrens Sport Festival, was held at the olympic stadium on May 19th 2004! It was a day filled with fun for more than 4500 orphans and handicapped children - the largest event of it's kind in Eurasia. The event started with the arrival of more than 110 orphanages, where the children were greeted by more than 400 excited volunteers who spent the day encouraging these children who have no family. The event was kicked of by Danone - the General sponsor, as well as the Moscow Government, the olympic and sport committee, and UNICEF.

The children where then off to compete and take part in more than 20 different sports and activities. During their break they all had lunch and enjoyed the good weather. The day was closed out by the award ceremony - where professional basketball, soccer, and volleyball players - came to present personally the trophies to the children who won! Then to finish off a perfect day 9 popular artists came to perform a concert for the children! The orphans headed home 6 hours later to their orphanage, with new sporting equipment and gifts that every child recieved - and more hope in their lives - that there are many people who care about them and want their lives to be special too.