It is bitter-sweet for the children, as they say goodbye they are also starting the journey home to family and friends.

Although it seemed too short, it was still a great summer with lot’s of memories and good times.  Of course the children not only take home memories but most importantly a boost to their immune system and a break from the radiation that they live in back home.

If you are interested in helping these children, please click here for more information.

Eric McKenzie

They invited all members of Canadian Aid for Chernobyl because they wanted everyone to meet Tolik and Sveta who they had brought to Canada for a visit from Belarus.  Tolik and Sveta host Pat and Tracy when they have traveled to Belarus with CAC and they wanted to return the favour.  Here are Tolik and Sveta looking at pictures with Nadia Nielsen of Brockville.

The weather was perfect and everyone had a wonderful time.  From the BBQ’d burgers and dogs right through to the campfire sing along!

The children from Belarus really enjoyed the opportunity to spend some time together.  Being able to communicate easily is a luxury they don’t all have day to day!  Here Ihar and Ivan enjoy a sunny visit.

Of course the adults all enjoy spending some leisure time with the kids as well.

I think some of the kids spent the whole time in the pool!  No shortage of fun when there is water involved on a sunny day!

This is exactly why these children come to Canada … fresh air, healthy food and sunshine!

Our summer with the children is off to a great start, and thanks to Tracy & Pat we got to enjoy some of it together.  Thanks for the great hospitality!

Eric McKenzie

The good news is that the trip went right on schedule with no delays and no lost luggage … it may be a first.  We loaded the children up into a series of mini-vans and headed for Brockville where the host families were anxiously waiting.  No one seemed to mind that it was the middle of the night.  Here Vika, who now lives and works in Canada, is reunited with her little sister Vlada.  Can you detect a slight family resemblance?

Some of the families have hosted for many years, here Pat & Tracy Yuille greet Ira who has been coming to their home for 7 years.

Of course we have new host families as well.  Here the Arts family spends some time getting to know Hanna with the help of one of our interpreters, Marina.

Despite the heat it looks like it is going to be a great summer!

Eric McKenzie

Irina Denisyenko is the President of the Chausy Regional Organization for Families with Invalid Children and what she does for these families is truly remarkable. Over the years we have brought her medicine, wheelchairs, clothing, diapers, walkers, crutches, canes, strollers and anything else you could imagine to help the lives of these families. She is also our main connection for families in our Guardian Angel Program and has helped connect many families with Canadian sponsors. Through the generosity of Don and Shirley Green and family we were able to purchase Irina a van! Here is Svetlana Siemenova of “Hope for the Future” (our sister organization in Belarus) presenting Irina with the keys of a 2002 Volkswagen micro-bus.

This van will be put to good use.  Irina will use it in transporting children to and from medical appointments, she will also be able to provide families with the opportunity  for their children to attend day-care.  Here they will be able to socialize, learn skills as well as do arts & crafts and get much needed outside stimulation.  This time away also gives their family the opportunity to seek employment to help improve their situation.

This  gift is going to help so many and continue to give on into the future.  I can’t wait to see Irina’s smiling face driving this van the next time we are in Chausy!

Eric McKenzie

Tonight will be my last night with my host family as Murray and I will be heading to Minsk tomorrow to make the delivery of the final boxes.

Today, however, was a great day.  It is always a highlight of every trip to drive to Klichev (2 hours and 40 minute drive) to deliver to Rita Kuntikova and her amazing family. We stopped in Mogilev to fuel up the truck and car as we headed out.  Fuel costs the same price at every station as it is regulated by the government.

We also had to make a stop to deliver a fridge to a girl who is a graduate of the Chausy Orphanage and now living in a very small apartment in downtown Mogilev.  She was extremely excited to receive this gift and I was extremely excited that she only lived on the 3rd floor!

Once we turned off of the main highway for the final 50 kilometers to Klichev the road was mostly very straight with a line of birch trees on either side separating it from the huge agricultural fields on both sides.  There are a few very large collective farms along this road.

Now for the stats on Rita’s family:

1 Mom
1 Dad
32 children of which
18 live at home
4 are away at school (and come home on holidays)
10 now live independently and have a total of
6 grandchildren!

and you thought your life was busy!

Of the 32 four are Rita and her husbands “natural” children.  The first time we visited Neil asked which of the children were hers to which she replied “they are all my children!”

When we arrived Rita was not yet home from a trip to Babruisk but was due at any minute so some of the older boys and Dad came out to help unload.

When Rita arrived we were opening boxes to show them what was inside.

The biggest hit was the many boxes of shoes that we brought that were donated.  We brought enough sizes and styles to outfit everyone in both shoes and winter boots.  There was also a bunk bed with mattresses, many, many hand knitted sweaters and quilts, kitchen utensils and dishes along with a stroller and highchair.  Here Lisa holds a sweater up to little Asha.

and Mini-Misha (the mini is to differentiate him from the 3 other Misha’s in the family!) tries on a small quilt.

While we were talking Asha picked up some hair accessories from one of the boxes and took them to her mother who patiently put them in her hair to form two little pigtails the way she likes them.

One of the things that always amazes me is how all of the children help look after the younger children.  It is not forced or requested and is obvious that this is a natural occurrence that happens daily.

One of the boys wanted to show me the beds that we had delivered the year before.

Lisa pulled out a large toy parking garage and a load of cars and trucks and boys descended on it and began playing together.

Rita invited us for tea and cookies and while we were sitting down Neil presented her with a new digital camera, case and memory card, purchased and donated by a woman in London Ontario.  She was absolutely thrilled. They have been borrowing one from a neighbour occasionally to get some pictures but now would have their own!  Note the teapot in the photo, Neil commented that it was the largest tea-pot he had ever seen and Rita replied “I have a large family.”  An understatement if there ever was one!

When we were leaving the table to head out we realized that Lisa was missing … we found her on the floor in the play room with the boys and their cars!

Lisa joked that she would love to take Asha and/or Mini-Misha home with her and Rita laughed and said that she could not have ANY of HER children!  Then she told us the story of how and when she came to adopt both of these children.  No question that these were ALL her children!  It is an amazing family and so heartwarming every time we visit!

Three or four times during our trip we passed horses and wagons on the shoulder of the highway … I managed to get a picture of this one as we sped by.

Back in Chausy, David, Margaret, Murray and some of the Orphanage staff installed a second greenhouse today.  The one put up last year was 20′ x 60′ and the new one is 20′ x 36′.  All that is left is for the plastic to go on and then they can start utilizing them for this years plants.

The weather was sunny and warm today (approx 14 degrees) and after taking some pictures of the greenhouse I noticed a bunch of the boys from the orphanage out playing a game of soccer.

Afterward we headed back to School #1 to clean out the gym.

It is hard to believe that we managed to deliver all of these boxes in just one week.

Here is the final load ready to take to Minsk tomorrow morning.

Eric McKenzie

The day started when we met at the orphanage for everyone to try on skates and for those of us planning to play hockey to pick out our gear.  Of course we get first pick of the equipment that we have delivered in the past, I think that they want to make sure we don’t get hurt!

Three buses are brought in to transport the children to the ice palace in Mogilev (45 minutes away).  Some of the Canadians ride on the buses with the children and the rest get rides with our regular drivers.  Here is the first bus pulling into the parking lot in Mogilev.

Once we figure out how to put on the equipment (quite a challenge for some of us) we head out to the ice for the Canadians versus Belarus game.  We are an equal opportunity team and we had Rhona suit up for our team, we figured she could confuse them with some fancy figure skating footwork!  Here she is with Pat before the game.

Here are a few of the old-timers having a rest on the bench!

And a little hockey action.  Of course the orphanage team beat us, in the early years the Canadians would make sure the the orphanage team won by a point or two, but now with the hockey team in place we are lucky to score a few goals and not embarrass ourselves too badly!

After the game all of the children and staff from the orphanage and all of the Canadians get an hour to skate.  For a lot of these children it is a very rare opportunity to get out of the orphanage.  The children will grab hold of our hands and skate together, then dash off to chase their friends … it is pure fun and laughter to whole time.

Afterward the children pile back onto the buses where the Canadians deliver potato chips and pop to all of the children … another rare treat.

Once back at the orphanage the children are fed their dinner and get ready for the concert that they have prepared for us.  Those who are not involved directly in the concert join the Canadians in the audience.

What a wonderful concert!  The talent of these children is amazing and it is obvious that they have been practicing for this moment.  Here one of the older girls performs a song for us.

Part way through the concert we stop for a few presentations.  Here Neil and Lisa (and our interpreter Masha) show the children a banner that has the Lyn School Lions insignia at one end and the Chausy Orphanage Meteor insignia at the other.  The connection between these two schools has been going for 10 years now and Neil had all of the children at the Lyn School sign this banner which will be hung at the Orphanage.  Neil also brought a second banner which will be signed by all of the children at the orphanage and taken back to hang in the Lyn School.

A presentation was also made of an electronic piano by Lisa.  This is a very high end piano with a lot of features for music composition.  It has many voices, a computer interface and the ability to store song components and burn songs to CD’s.  This is going to be a very valuable tool for the already successful music program.

The music teacher performed a song for us that was composed by 3 girls from the orphanage and has won several awards.  It is about a mother who chooses alcohol over her baby.  They wrote it in hopes that it may make some people think and maybe save a child or two from a future that is their current reality!  A thought provoking moment indeed!

Neil also presented this years books purchased with funds raised by the Lyn School.

Every year children graduate and leave the orphanage and this year was no different.  Approximately 30 children have moved on and 30 new children have arrived.  One of the new kids is this little boy who performed for us.  He has a personality that shines through and his performance was wonderful.

Of course there are also the children that we have watched grow and develop over the years and one of the shining stars is Nastia.  She has a beautiful voice and sang a lovely song for us.

During one of the songs 4 of the children came out and grabbed 4 Canadians to get up and dance.  I was fortunate enough to stay hidden behind my camera.  Did I mention that this was a fun day?

After the performances by the children our own Pat got up and did a couple of tunes and then one of our drivers, Andre, who is very talented, also sang a few songs.  The kids always enjoy his performance and he has them singing along and laughing every year.  He managed to convince all of the Canadians to get up and sing a rendition of “If you’re happy and you know it…”.

After the concert we have another chance to mingle with the children and the Canadians always bring candy and Canadian pins and stickers to share with the kids.  Here is Murray handing out some candy.

Although I am tired and will probably be pretty sore tomorrow, today will be remembered as a great day where the deliveries are behind us and the kids come first … as it should be!

Eric McKenzie

This afternoon a group of us went to my favourite family in the Guardian Angel Program.  This family is sponsored by a small group of people connected through my previous job at Shorewood Packaging.  I have never met such an amazing family, they are real proof that the Beatles were correct … “all you need is love”!

Neil, Lisa, Pat, Tracy and I all stopped in to see them.  Pat and Tracy had purchased a hot water heater for their host family but they were unable to use it due to electrical restrictions in the building they live in, so they decided that this was the perfect family to give it to.  They live in a house but will be connected to the municipal water supply this summer and were absolutely thrilled to receive this gift!  Once we arrived we opened the boxes that had been dropped off earlier and went through everything with them.  Here Valentina holds a sweater up in front of Yeleana.

Yeleana was damaged at birth during a forced birth and is severely mentally challenged.  She is however fortunate to have an extremely loving family that puts her needs ahead of everything else.  Last year when visiting, Pat mentioned that he had horses and Leonid could not understand why he would need a horse if he owned a tractor … much less three horses.  Of course he started asking more questions about Pat’s horses and his farm.  It is very hard for him to understand the concept of caring for three horses just to ride or as pets.  Here Natasha our interpreter tries to help Pat explain.

Of course we were invited for something to eat and some tea, normally we have to apologize and move on to the next visit, but we purposely planned this visit today so we would have some time.  Once we had agreed to stay, the table came out and food was set.  Here is a traditional Easter Bread (Paschalne Hleb).  The eggs around it are died by boiling them with red onions.  We were each given an egg as well.

A game is played with the eggs, turns are taken holding an egg and then another person taps your egg with theirs.  If your egg cracks then you lose and the winner gets your egg.  It is played until someone has all of the eggs.  I lost early on and Pat ended up with all of the eggs!  Here is the table.

Here is this amazing family.  Valentina (Mom), Yeleana, Leonid (Dad), Yeleana’s sister-in-law, niece and brother.  All are wonderful people and I watched everyone of them helping to take care of Yeleana at some point during our visit.  One of the biggest surprises was how much Yeleana’s niece Dasha had grown … she is only 12 years old!

Although I would love to be at home having Easter with my family, hunting for chocolate eggs and eating ham and scalloped potatoes, this was a pretty good second place.  With this much love in one room it is pretty hard leaving without a smile on your face!

Eric McKenzie

It is held in the Chausy Concert Hall, which is also used for local concerts and as a movie theatre.

The first person I saw when I walked in the door was Sasha Krasikov.  Sasha has brittle bone disease and thanks to a trip to Canada and the wonderful Doctors at the Shrine Hospital in Montreal he is now living life pain free. The change in this boy is astounding!  He was wheeling himself around and playing with a balloon with several other children.

Here is Irina Denisyenko speaking to the children and starting the festivities.

The children are seated at tables for the entertainment portion.  There is a small troupe of local children’s performers who act out nursery rhymes and organize games for the children.

This little girl was having a hard time deciding which was more fascinating, the entertainers or the Canadians.

Here a couple of the Canadians were pulled up to help in a game where the children had to draw faces on balloons.

Many of the children along with quite a few Canadians were brought up to “play instruments” along with some very lively music.

The formal part of the party ends with the presentation of gifts to each of the children who are called up, by name, one at a time.  Neil and Lisa presented all of the gifts.

Here one of the Dad’s helps his son receive his gift.  This boy is blind and autistic and has a wonderful father.  He was standing across from me during the entertainment and I watched the father gently stroking his sons cheek to sooth him during the noisy parts.  I was asking Neil about him and he told me that the father taught him how to ride a bicycle.  He built a pair of large training wheels for the bicycle and then stretched a rope between two posts.  Then he taught him to ride sliding his hand along the rope as he went until he got to the post.  Then he would turn around and do it again, laughing and smiling the whole time.  This is a father dedicated to giving his son the best quality of life that he can.

Afterward, Irina presented each Canadian with a gift of art created by the children and made with love for us so that we can keep the children in our hearts even while we are back at home.  Here Jann poses with her art and a little boy named Andre who made it for her.

The party was a great success and everyone left with a smile on their face and a warm glow in their heart.

Some of the Canadians missed the party to continue with the deliveries as we realized that no deliveries would be possible tomorrow as it is Easter Sunday.  When we returned to the gym at School #1 we found a near empty gym!  Somehow we had managed to deliver just about everything in record time.  The last few trucks were loaded and I jumped in a van with Randy & Margaret for a run out to Kuzmanichi, a small village about 20 minutes away that I had delivered to in previous years.  It was really nice to pull up to a house and have the family recognize you and greet you with warm hugs.  Margaret asked for a picture and they insisted that we join them and have it taken by our interpreter.  What a lovely family.

The last stop was to drop a food box to a woman who’s husband had passed away two years ago, just a month or so prior to our visit.  As soon as Margaret & I saw her we recognized her as the “apple lady”.  That day two years before she was still grieving for her husband and was so thankful for the food box that she wanted to give us something in return.  All she had was a few apples left in her winter storage.  We accepted the apples and enjoyed them on our way home … it was a gesture I will never forget, an apple has never tasted so good.  This year she also remembered us and apologized because she had nothing to give us in return, Margaret told her that her smile of recognition was more than enough!  Here is Margaret with our “apple lady”.

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday and the Canadians are taking a day off to spend with their families.  Most of the heavy work is done, but we still have a few exciting days planned so stay tuned!

Eric McKenzie

Locals continued to arrive at the school to pick up their parcels and it is amazing to see the different methods they have to carry their boxes.  Some use bicycles, some use small 2 wheeled dolly’s, a few unload their boxes into bags and carry them home, we also have drivers available to drive them as well.  Today a man arrived driving a small 2 wheeled garden tractor pulling a wagon.  He sat on the front of the wagon and his wife was in the back.  It turned out that they are the Grandparents of a girl now living in Brockville.  Cathy had a few things to give them and here she is posing with them and their tractor.

Once the Social Service buses returned we got 3 teams on the road delivering boxes.  Each team consists of a Social Services driver and worker, an interpreter and 2 – 4 Canadians.  Today I was out with Cathy, Cole and Annis along with our interpreter Masha.  This house is very typical of many of the rural houses.

It is interesting to see some of the devices used in the houses.  This is one of many variations of water tanks over a sink used in homes without running water.  Just fill the tank and gravity does the rest.

The woman in this photo lives alone in a very remote area.  She had broken her left wrist in the recent past and it is now healed.  However, it is obvious that the bones were never set and they do not line up.  It causes her constant pain and of course is very limiting for her.  She has neighbours who drop in to help but we were concerned that she would not be able to open a jar or can.

Today my team was on a slightly smaller bus than yesterday, but it was still amazing to see where our driver was willing to go.  I guess the big snow tires help a certain amount, but it was still necessary to walk to several of the homes.

The house we delivered to in this picture actually was at the “end of the road”!

Many of the Canadians bring toys and clothes to give out when they see needy children.  Both Cathy and Annis had brought these items and some candy as well.  Anywhere we stopped with children they would pull surprises out of their bags.  Cathy was given a large box of “Hot Wheels” cars to give out.  This in itself is not unusual, but in this case the donation was made by an 8 year old boy!  A boy to whom these cars would carry great value … I can think of no more heartfelt donation received by our organization!

Any family with more than 2 children is considered a large family and qualifies for assistance.  Here a mother of 3 holds her twins while her young infant sleeps in the next room.  Cathy pulled out some pajamas and a blanket out of her bag.

Here is yet another shot showing the amount of water lying around.  Many houses were difficult for us to get to even with boots on, there are some homes that we saw that would have been impossible!

The boy in this home has crossed eyes and is considered and invalid.  Here his Grandmother tries to get him to face the camera for a photo, while he focuses on tugging the wrapper off his newly acquired sucker!

This woman has 6 children, 3 were home when we stopped in.  Cathy managed to pull a pair of matching tops out of her bag for the two girls.

People are the same where ever you go … where there is water, there are boys playing.

Here is part of our group making the muddy trek to a home down a long lane-way.  It is awesome to see that many of our group (delegates and interpreters) are young people in their 20′s.  This generation seems to be so much more aware of the need to help those less fortunate than ourselves.

The house at the end of the long lane-way had quite a remarkable view.  Looking over a small lake and across to a small church.

Here is yet another case of utilizing what you have.  I have never seen a set of barbells quite like this.

These old wooden homes heated by wood is a combination that is always dangerous and I saw 2 recently burned out homes in as many days.

Something we have seen more and more over the past couple of years is the “store on wheels”.  These vehicles travel around from village to village bringing milk and bread and other necessities to people who have no means to get to a store.

The man in this photo is repairing his petchka.  It has been a long hard winter and this one has obviously dried out and started to crack and break down.  The warmer weather allows him to get it fixed up before it is beyond repair.  He is a single father raising two young children.

Our final stop today was a woman who fought during the second world war. Belarus was on the front and lost 1 in 4 of it’s citizens.  In this region 1 in 3 died.  Her hearing was very poor and we were unable to get any details, but we know that she was awarded a medal.  I have combined a picture of her taken when she enlisted with one taken today.  She could not have been more than 18 (maybe younger) in the first photo.

We also met a man today who is a double amputee.  I watched him go from a car to a little home-made dolly which he then wheeled across the rough driveway and into his home over a threshold.  He had a smile on his face the whole time and was very happy to see us, as up beat and cheerful as anyone I have met.  There was also a woman who has been bed-ridden since her release from a German prisoner of  war camp and the list goes on!

All in all another great day with many meaningful experiences and memorable people who, through no fault of their own, find themselves in need of a helping hand.  Thanks Cathy, Annis, Cole, Masha and Lena for sharing this experience with me.  I watched each of you give that hand along with a little piece of your heart as well.  And thanks to all of the people we met today who opened their homes and hearts and gave back to us more than they will ever know.

Eric McKenzie

As I have mentioned before it is critical that all documentation is accurate and we always have someone manning the “desk”.  Here Tanya, one of our interpreters, uses the inventory list to call local people to see if they can come in and pick up their boxes.  We must also collect Passport information and signatures for every box.

We keep track of our official documents, drivers and interpreters on this white board.

There is also lots of organizing, lifting and loading to be done.

Some of us were starting on our Social Service runs today.  We have 270 food boxes that were donated but not assigned to a specific family.  We give this number to the local Social Services organization and they pick those most in need to receive them.  These are usually rural seniors, single Mom’s and large families.  At this time of year the winter root cellar and preserves have been exhausted but it is too early for the gardens, so there is a great need.  Normally we have large vans and 4 wheel drive vehicles for this job but today there weren’t any available so they sent us a bus!  We loaded up 30 boxes, 3 Canadians, 1 interpreter, 1 Social Service worker and a driver and headed out.

This is pretty typical of the area we were in.

Belarus had the coldest winter with the most snow in over 30 years, as a result there is water everywhere.  This section of road was washed away so someone marked it with this flag, although you wouldn’t get far once you avoided it as the road was completely washed out in both directions just past this.

This man’s wife was in the hospital so he was taking care of the home and took great pride in showing us how clean he had the whole house!  In this picture he is signing our sheet.

The woman in this picture was being taken care of by her son, again the house was very clean and tidy.

The storks are returning to the area after the winter and pairing up in their giant nests, some in trees like this one, but many more on top of the many village water towers.

Most rural roads with a dozen or more houses clustered together have a little government store.  They all look similar to this.

Inside it is like stepping back 100 years.  They have a few necessities along with a little hardware, fresh bread etc.

We felt very strange driving around the country in this big bus.  We got a lot of strange looks as we made our way around.  Our driver stopped and turned the bus around many times due to water and mud and we would walk carrying the food box(es) with us.  However at this one particularly large “lake” in the road he decided to take a run at it as we were returning.  I couldn’t believe he tried it and was even more surprised when he made it.  The funny thing was we ended up having to return through it a little while later.

At one home we met two unmarried sisters living together.  They had this picture of themselves on the wall obviously taken long ago.

I asked if I could take a picture of them but unfortunately did not realize I had them reversed in my picture.

The man in the next picture gave us directions to several houses in the area and I asked him if I could take his picture.  I couldn’t resist, he was such a happy guy and had such a great face!

Here’s a picture showing some of the standing water.

A typical country road.

This mode of transport is still being utilized everyday in the country and at this time of year, for many, it is the only way they can get to and from their homes.

This last picture is of a woman who was being cared for by her daughter-in-law.  She told me that although she cannot get out of bed or get out anymore, her mind is still sharp.  Again, this home was clean and neat and well looked after.

We also spent the evening delivering family parcels in Mogilev (45 minutes from Chausy).  With that task done we can now focus on finishing the Chausy region.

It is hard to convey the feeling you get when making these deliveries, especially to those in dire need.  I had one woman tell me that she is over 70 years old and this is the first present anyone had ever given her.  Most are overwhelmed by the food and usually there are tears of gratitude along with hugs and never ending “thank you so much” (balshoy spaseba).

I know I will sleep well tonight and not just because I’m bone tired!  I have a warmth in my heart filled with the smiles and tears of the wonderful people that I met today.

Eric McKenzie