GREETINGS FROM ROMANIA!
Buna ziua, dragi prieteni (Good day, dear friends)!
I know you are anxious to hear about our children, and what is new in their lives, so let me tell you the most important things. In a way, everything that happens at the hospital or at the school is important, but as I don’t have that much room in this newsletter, I will select the highlights of our activity.
First of all, Dr. Delia Asoltanei, the director of the hospital, and Maricela Popa, the director of the school, and their staff as well as Global Volunteers Romania staff are sending you all the best and our appreciation for all your help that, without a doubt, is making an important difference.
Among us, the Romanian staff of Global Volunteers, there is another young man, the third person, Ciprian Horoita, who participated at the last team leader training in December 2007 and led his first team in January. So, Ciprian and I will be leading teams and Dan will be assisting both of us (his luck as he will get to be more around the children at the hospital!).
Tutova Hospital
Not many children have left the hospital over the last six months, but new ones have arrived. The youngest is one month old. The "toddler gang" is getting bigger as the children make progress and they join the next developmental group. Ioana, Andreea and Maia -- the oldest ones in that group and leaders as well of their peers -- recently left the clinic to live with foster families.
There is a saying in Romania "one eye is crying and the other one is laughing" which really applies to this situation. Even if I know it is better for them in a family. I, as well as the whole clinic staff, was heart broken. It is impossible not to miss them. They spent years at the hospital abandoned by their parents and they were our special girls. They helped the staff, and they helped discipline the other children and followed me wherever I went.
The other toddlers -- twins, Marian G and Iulian G, Dumitru-Marian, Crina, Mirela and Beatrice -- are as lively as they can be at this age and also very vocal. It is fun to see them in the morning bursting out the door of their playroom and having them give us goodbye kisses and say”Pa!” when we leave for the day. Milica, the preschool teacher, is teaching them how to count, to recognize different things in books and to my surprise they like books (some so much that sometimes they try to chew on them!). Also, the toddlers probably realized that we need new paintings on the wall so they started….redecorating. They draw on the wall as soon as they get a crayon in their hands.
The mobile infants are more numerous compared to what the group used to be. Stefan, Adrian, Florin, Maiastra, Mihaela , and Samuel are trying to walk. I think Mihaela will be the first to do that without help, but we will see.
The non-mobile infant group is still the largest, but as I can see some of them will soon graduate to the mobile infants. Paula, the twins, Laura and Georgiana are on their way to the next developmental stage.
Our dearest Alexandra and Ana-Maria are doing just fine, given their conditions. Ana-Maria is happy having her personal care givers (thank you, Rita for renewing your sponsorship!). She eats very well and likes diverse food. Alexandra has started walking, but so far she takes only a few steps at a time and mostly when she's in her crib. We just don’t want to push her because she has brittle bone disease.
Sadly, Ramona, the little girl with polycystic kidneys, passed away last September. It was hard for all of us to go through that and we miss her a lot. This was the first time in eight years that a child from this hospital has died. Even though she passed away at a different facility getting further treatment for her condition, it still affected all of us at Tutova Hospital. Somehow we thought that even if she had that disease she would live a long life. She does still live in our hearts! Let’s pray for the others to be healthy and live a long and happy life! We can help them and we can definitely make a big difference.
Principesa Elena Bibescu Middle School
At the middle school we have changed the system of working with the students and teachers. Most of the classes will be focused on what the teachers do in their classes as part of the curriculum. The teachers will inform volunteers on what topic they study currently and ask to either assist them in their formal classes or will assign certain students to work with volunteers in a different classroom on the same topic the teacher is working on with the rest of the students. In other words, the volunteers and the Romanian teachers will join their efforts in doing the same thing at the same time. That way the result of this work will be measurable and meaningful for everybody. We have tried the new system, and it is working and showing great results.
Join us again
In the summer, the project will focus on conversational English since that is vacation time! The students are always eager to work with volunteers. The children from Tutova also need your attention! As Dr. Delia always says at the end of each service program “we are still here, waiting for you to return.”
Help from home
Thanks to the generosity of many sponsors and donors, Global Volunteers has helped the Tutova clinic tremendously in giving additional financial support to help pay for food for the children, staff salaries to attend to the children, surgery for a child, a new hematology analyzer, building heat and electricity. The funds raised for the Tutova Clinic water project in Romania, have paid for a written evaluation and an engineer to produce the design. In keeping in line with European Union (EU) regulations, Dr. Delia from Tutova clinic has submitted this proposal and is waiting for approval from the committee in order to begin the water system. Once the proposal and design are approved then the clinic will receive a matching grant from the EU. That grant along with the funds raised by Global Volunteers will help to put the new water system in place. We are so grateful for these contributions! I encourage those of you who may not be able to return and serve with us again to become sponsors to help support the clinic. You could also share your experiences with your others as and encourage them to become sponsors or to serve with us.
Until will see you again, good health and blessings from us!
Pe curand! (See you soon)!
Mihaela Cirjontu
Romania Country Manager
