INFORMATION
UKRAINE – GOOD SAMARITAN FOUNDATION, ODESA
The charity distributes Rotary shoeboxes across the whole of the country’s largest region as part of their assistance to poor families and individuals, orphans, disabled people, people in residential accommodation due to mental or physical health problems or because of their age. Due to the ongoing conflict with Russia along Ukraine’s eastern border there are internally displaced people in the Odesa Region receiving support from the charity. The Good Samaritan team is working in an environment where welfare from the state is very limited and poverty, specially in rural communities is commonplace.
MOLDOVA
Moldova is perhaps the poorest country in Europe and we have increased the number of shoeboxes being delivered to it. Working with the Rotary clubs in the capital Chisinau, who receive the consignments, Rotary shoeboxes are sent to contacts we have given them such as Hope & Homes for Children’s partner CCF Moldova; the Spurgeons project in the village of Vadul Lui Isaac and the Red Cross. In addition the local Rotarians deliver shoeboxes to many other groups of people in need.
ROMANIA
HOPE & HOMES FOR CHILDREN
We have worked for many years with Hope & Homes delivering to their Romanian base in Baia Mare in the NW of the country. The charity is greatly respected by Romanian authorities for bringing best practice to child care and assisting with the closure of state institutions for orphans, often economic orphans, and disabled children. The children are either reunited with their families, fostered or adopted by Romanian families, or moved to Small Family Homes living in groups of about 10 with a house parent. Many of the young people in care are teenagers and some have mild to severe learning difficulties. The charity also supports vulnerable families and works in partnership with other organisations helping some of the poorest Romanians including those from the Roma people.
Hope & Homes is working in the majority of counties across the country so Rotary shoeboxes are given to children and families the length and breadth of Romania.
IASI 2000 ROTARY CLUB
This Rotary club has distributed many tens of thousands of shoeboxes across NE Romania over the years. Rotarians in this club and other Rotary clubs that receive boxes from Iasi to deliver to their own communities are inspired by the energetic Iasi 2000 member Liviu Statache. Liviu and the many willing volunteers deliver shoeboxes across the county of Iasi and neighbouring counties. Many of the boxes are taken to rural destinations where conditions are still very poor for much of the population, in contrast to the rising standard of living to be found in the towns. Shoeboxes are often distributed in rural schools and kindergartens, children’s homes, hospitals and houses or flats.
CLUJ SAMUS ROTARY CLUB
The Rotarians take boxes to orphanages in the town of Cluj Napoca and also distribute boxes in rural locations.
THE PRISON FELLOWSHIP – CLUJ NAPOCA
The Prison Fellowship is run by their President Andrei Brie who took over after the premature death of the founder Constantin Asavoaie on Christmas Eve 2013. The foundation built in 1993 for counselling prisoners and reintegrating them into the society has almost 5000 volunteers working in all Romanian prisons. As well as working in prisons, Prison Fellowship Romania helps the families of prisoners; young people with disadvantaged or disturbed backgrounds; vulnerable adults including those in their night shelters and Roma groups. Rotary shoeboxes are given to families; adults; teenagers and children.
SPURGEONS
We deliver to a storage point in Tinaud which serves that village and Spurgeons’ other projects in Hidiselu, Hotar and Tulca, all in the vicinity of Oradea in Bihor county in western Romania. The staff run kindergartens and other support for the rural communities that are suffering increasingly because of high unemployment.
NETWORKS
NetWorks mainly serves Roma communities in the county of Arad in Western Romania. Lee Saville is the charity’s President and one of the founding members. Our liaison is with Dea Piscoi who facilitates NetWorks distribution of Rotary Shoeboxes to families and children who are among the poorest of the poor. The charity works to improve conditions for homeless people and those living in very basic accommodation, as part of their crisis programme. NetWorks also helps people to help themselves by cultivating food, drilling wells, starting small businesses and by encouraging children to attend school and giving them educational support.