HungryForLifeInternational

With excitement building in our hearts we departed the guest house on Friday morning and embarked on our journey to the orphanage 250km away. It was a good day for travelling and God blessed us with safety. However 2 out of 3 vehicles got pulled over b y the police for no reason at all. After a few minutes we continued on our way. Everyone had their ideas of what the orphanage and the kids would be like.

As we pulled into the driveway of the orphanage the children came running with big smiles on their faces and waving their at us. For some team members it was hard to see the buildings as it reminded them of past experiences. For others it was heart warming to see the warm welcome we received. The children quickly came to speak with us and pulled the men out onto the soccer field. We visited with the children and staff for a while before dinner.

After dinner we hosted a tea & sweets kitchen shower for the staff. It was a great time of fellowship and getting to know each other. We gave the gifts we brought and everyone was so grateful. The Pastor spoke, shared the needs of the orphanage.

These needs included roof repairs, septic system replacement, food, linoleum floors on main floor, and sewing room. We were able to help them do the flooring, food, sewing room and tables, chairs and hydro account. Thank you to the woman who had a dream and donated for the sewing room. Thank you to everyone else who donated to specific projects. We are praying that God will provide money for the roof and septic system in the future. The Pastor was so appreciative and thanked us and everyone back home for their prayers and support.

Friday night we slept in the beds the orphans do. They were actually pretty comfortable and cozy. The orphans who gave up their beds spent the night in the village at different homes. It was a great experience.

Saturday morning we woke up to the sound of little boys running through the halls. They were eager to play with us again. The men had a good game of soccer before breakfast. Who knew that Bill was a great goalie. After breakfast our women set up craft time. Marg did a great star craft which was perfect for the younger ones but all enjoyed it. Katie and Agnus taught the children spool knitting while Sharon showed them how to make God Eyes. Adel brought wood models (boat, tractor, bi plane) which the children had to sand, glue together and paint. This was very popular with all. Bill, Ron, and Dale we very patient as they helped the children.

After lunch the children had a choir performance for us. The junior choir (7 & under) sang a few songs then the middle choir (7-10 yr) joined in. One little boy, who Marg wanted to take home, did a solo and has an amazing voice. Marg and Bill now have 5 grandchildren. Finally the senior choir (11yr and up) came up, they only had 2 girls though so they didn’t do as many songs. It was a great performance and was nice to see their pride and satisfaction in performing.

Then it was time to leave… the hard part. There were smiles and hugs and tears. We were leaving knowing that we had made a difference and shared Gods love with them.

The new Orphanage Transition Home



The Chilliwack Team

Today was very overwhelming for us. We had a little service in the morning which was very meaningful for each one us. Right after breakfast we packed few hygiene and food hampers, some kids gifts, soccer balls and left for Shishkino. The first stop was very upsetting.

"To see human beings living in such deplorable conditions was heart-wrenching: animals shouldn't live like that", said Margaret.




We had a special visit with Pasha and sisters. Pasha is 28 yrs old-paraplegic. He's been bedridden for the last 3.5 yrs. It was very touching to us to see him smiling under the blanket the ladies of Eden Mennonite made it. The fellowship around the watermelon and the piano together with his 2 care giving sisters was most meaningful and uplifting. On the way back Adel was driving one of the vans. She did very well; swerving to miss potholes and keeping up to Peter.



We stopped at home for a quick lunch before dashing out the door for our next banquet. This banquet was held in the restaurant for handicap individuals. We were expecting 55 but close to 60 attended. Pastor Nikoly of the 2nd Baptist Church shared a message, Peter sang songs and testimonies were shared by Katie, Dale, and Bill. There was one man who Dale and Adel spoke with about God. He has had a lot of information from the Jehovah Witness people and was confused about our God. Pastor John showed up and started speaking with the man. We invited him to John's church on Sunday; Dale and Adel will be there and hope to see the man.

We are very thankful for your prayers. Our time here is almost over. Today was more of a finish up day with sorting stuff we shipped and finishing up with the renos of the church. It was nice of the ladies to have a pit stop at the Chkalovo construction site man work on, though Peter Rempel wasn’t enjoying it casue he just wanted to keep on working :) Amazing to have such a hard working people on the team.
The day was long for all of us: ladies had a banquet in the evening and the men kept working on the church till dark. Many things were accomplished and we are very happy to be used by God here in the Ukraine.

It was another beautiful day in Nikipol. The men and Mary went back to the church to continue building. It was frustrating and fruitful – it was a very up and down day. Andrew wants perfection in his work but with crooked walls perfection is not possible; God stretched him in this way. Other team members felt frustrated with the time it took to get supplies and feel they wasted time, however this is how things are in the Ukraine. Mary took her frustration out by playing piano and at the same time lifted the spirits of everyone. The Deacon is very appreciative of the work the team is doing. There is a little girl who has been hanging around the church and was helping to put the hand made washers and screws together.

Another busy but very beautiful day for us.. After the breakfast our team split up into two groups. One group was off to Chkalovo church to do renovations and the other two to do home visits.
in the evening when we all got together we were sharing our stories from the day. the men shared a story about a little girl (about 7-8 yrs. old) that showed up to the church later on in the day. She said that she was very exited to see renovations happening here because she’s been coming to Sunday school and really loves it, and asked if she can help somehow. She told us, that her family is non-Christian; she is the only one who comes to church. It was neat to have her there for the rest of the evening helping guys to assemble screws and washers they needed to use for the walls. All men were deeply touched by it.
The other lady came and said that she is so thankful to have a church cause she has no one, and to be able to come to this place and meet with others was so important and so precious to her. The other lady said the same thing about having a church building to run to especially when her husband gets drunk and beats her she come to this place for the refuge.

Than it was the ladies turn to share the stories. When we came to Mariya’s house we were shocked at what we saw. Here she was sitting in bed in a little room with table and few chairs around. Everything looked so poor. We asked her why is she is bed and she showed us her foot that was burnt up to her ankle and was oozing. She’s been in bed for 32 days now with it. Her friends are trying to help her and we could see that she‘s been using lots of home remedies. Obviously the hospitals and proper medications are out of her reach. Even more depressing for us was to see her husband and son’s conditions. They are chronic alcoholics. While we were visiting they kept peaking into the window to see what they could get from the things we brought after we leave. It was such a sad sad situation but we could sense God’s presents in her room and peace. we hope and pray that through our visit and the things we brought she would be encouraged. Please pray for her, her name is Mariya.









We are so thankful to the Lord to give us an opportunity to come here and ability to help those that have less. Thank you very much for your prayers and your support.

Chilliwack team

It was beautiful sunny day today as we drove to our first church/banquet meeting in Tarasovka. The service was held outside under the grapevine. The service started with words from the pastor and songs. It was an interesting experience for all of us to worship God in a new cultural setting. We all realized that God is the same God in the Ukraine as in Canada; God is the same to each nation and we are all his children. Katie, Adel, and Lorene shared their testimony during the service. It was very powerful to hear their experiences with God.





After the service we shared a meal with the congregation and enjoyed fellowship with the Ukrainians. We handed out about 50 of each - food and hygiene hampers. Each person was so thankful and appreciative of these. They all tried to say thank you in English. Many of the team members helped the widows and women carry their hampers home. The children were given special gifts including a notebook, pen, crayons, coloring pages, stickers, toothpaste & brush as well as a little toy. There were about 35 children there.




Then we headed to the second church. The church was very full, with many people standing at the back. We had the privilege of witnessing a young couple receive a blessing from the church for their marriage. Our team shared testimonies again, Adel, Sharon and Agnes. Then Pastor John shared from God’s word. At the end of the service the pastor gave an opportunity for anyone to give their life to Christ and 1 young lady did. This lady was the cousin of the bride and that was the only reason she was at church. It is great to see how God uses a wedding to bring someone to Him. Please pray for this young lady as she begins her walk with God.