Help Needed

I just got word from Sergey and Anya that this young one needs help...

"Golnara call to ask, and she tall what Danil it 's boy litel boy from orphanage he now in the hospital and for him dr. did operation (hernia ) for Danil need will do one more operation soon for urine bladder it is 9000 som ($187 US) need to pay for all that operation. I have $100 from donation. In this week I want to go visit Danil in the hospital. I send to you pic of Danil"

  He will need a little food while at the hospital as well, so we are basicly needing another $100 for Danill if anyone is interested .

Behind the Scenes

I had a little chuckle a few days ago. A friend said they might stop using Face Book because it was too depressing .. every one with their perfect lives and their perfect homes .. it made her depressed , even thought she loves and appreciates all that she has ..   Well Cindy, this post is for you hahaha 

Each time we arrive home from Kyrgyzstan, there is a lot of work to do getting the house back in shape .  we focus on the side of the house where you drive up to the house .. .. its almost like a park.  

Mom has her door in the front of the house and has been working hard on her gardens and walk way .    

Today we will take you behind the scenes ... Have you ever seen those entertainers who are dressed as two different people at the same time .. look from one profile and they are one person and for the other a completely different person .   like the video below 

As you can tell from the size of the trees that have grown up through the lawn, we have not been over here for a while .  

While the girls are home , we hope to take back the jungle that is closing in on us ..  But for now it keeps us humble ... and maybe Cindy this will give you a little HOPE ....

Calling all Health care workers !

This fall we have three teams coming to Kyrgyzstan .  We are so excited about this .  The arrival of a team, is the arrival of HOPE.  Have you ever considered being part of a short term missions trip ?  Maybe its time .

We  have a vision, a vision  of having a medical based trip in the spring.  We would like to come along side the Dr's in Kyrgyzstan , like Dr Tatyana and Dr Anara ..  

I envision clinics providing help in all area's .. from GP's to specialists , eye exams , hearing tests, dermatology, physiotherapy... you name it     , .. training and equipping medical personnel and individuals , meeting immediate needs as well as  equipping for the future .   We would like to see this team accompanied by local Dr's from Kyrgyzstan , and a substantial Medical trust fund to help meet the needs as they present them selves.  

  I see the clinics working  in the orphanages and seniors homes, in the small towns , and the remote villages .

I am tired of  seeing the good Drs over worked and having little resources to help,   I am tired of  people suffering and dying because they can't get the help that they need , and I am tired of  seeing so many people we know who settle for the same diagnosis .. because that what pays the best....

I don't know where this will lead, but I wanted to start now and put some feelers out to see if any of you are interested,    If  you are interested ,  email me  at sunmasterjohn@aol.com , and let me know your area of experiences, and this fall we can begin the process of medical clearances as well as matching up with National Dr's wanting to be a part of this ..   

Call it's time !

Won’t be Overwhelmed

Jengish and the boys are serving up supper to several dozen homeless in a few minutes .. 

for some this may be the first steps to a new life......

This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance. The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice. You won’t lose out on a thing.”
Matthew 10:41-42

Sober and Serving

One of the 25 homeless that Jengish and his friends helped lat night on the streets of Bishkek.  

Ermek, is no stranger to the streets , that is where Jengish found him many years ago.  Today he has a new life.. he is a new man..  He is Sober and Serving ..  Along with the volunteer work that he is doing with Jengish ( fulfilling his desire to give back ),Ermek is an incredible wood carver . and is in the process of trying to start a small business doing custom wood carvings 

Ermek showing one of the meals that they have prepared for the homeless ..

Here are a couple examples of the type of work that Ermek does 

I got an email that I wanted to share ... It is from our neighbor in Kyrgyzstan.  Her Apartment is right above ours and is the same size .  She and her family are moving , and have offered to sell it to us, and will not publicly list it until we have a chance to respond. The apartment could have so many uses , A place for at risk youth that we are working with, a place we could use for hosting meals for teams when they come as well as the many people that we feed each day .. Lots of possibilities .. but no money .. It would be      $30 000  .. a very good price for this apartment .. especially since it would come furnished and ready to move in .  We are open to any and all options at this point.   maybe one of our fiends is thinking of investing in KG   ...   Just putting it out there ...  

Update ...

I wanted to start off with some great news .  The need I posted at the hospital has brought some response .  the biggest news is that we now have a sponsor the is willing to match all donations up to  $5000 so that we we can proceed ...   this is such an encouragement to us all .   

The work begins .. The work begins today at the Police station where we are building a playground , the work begins in the village on there playground, and the work begins on the streets , were the homeless will be cared for .   here is a little update ....

From Jengish ... 

 Hi John , Things are happening now in Tokmok.  I met with Vlady today and we got him started at the police station .  They were very happy to see him starting this .. they can see now that we are serious about helping .  Here is a picture of Vlady with the Police inspector in charge of special projects, and Richard from OSCE .  

We are cooking for the homeless tonight .. we ran into a few problems , our gas stove stopped working and we are cooking on a small hot plate.  |Can we get a kazan that we can cook with out side?  We are also thinking that we could use the small change tent that you have , and use it for giving them showers in the park, then giving new underwear. 

 I can go with Sergey to see the baby hospital Dr and get started on the documents so that we will be ready to start as soon as you get here.  I will keep you posted. 

  Kamalla has agreed to go out to find and bring food to Victor and Luba, and make sure that they are all OK.   

  I will talk to you tomorrow if there is anything else you need ..    

Then there was the letter from Larisa 

Hello John and Julie , Emma and Bekah! How are you doing? I have been sick for about month.  I don`t have high temperature now but still feeling not good. My right hand is not working well. I got some treatment but no good result.  I would like to ask your help if it`s possible to find a sponsor for my additional treatment. I need 500$ to go to Bishkek and get a treatment in the hospital. Tanya is working in the men`s home for me she organized celebration for the men after the celebration they got good quality sandals. Thank you very much ! It was a good help for them because many of them didn`t have shoes.  Thank you very much it was a good help for them because many of them didn`t have shoe`s  . 

We are going to start now  with the kids playground in the east Iskra   For this work I got $$$$ from Olga from you .  Men say hi to you all. People from the village they came to visit me when I was sick they say hi too. I will sent you foto`s of the garden of men`s home. We have very good , rich garden they started eat from the garden I mean vegetables for salad. We could plant again for the winter different vegetables about 100$ we need for that.  Thank you for everything! If you have something for me to say or any tasks for me I would like you to write to me i`m sending this letter through Acel.

Love Larisa,Tanya.

A project on my heart.

there is a place that is special to us in Tokmok.  That is the baby hospital.  , its located on the back side of this maternity hospital..

ceiling and walls in ICU
a few years back we were asked by the government to help them out .  The walls were crumbling , the roof leaked, and the floors were collapsing.   We did not want to be pressured into working here, so I first spoke with Sergey and Anya .  They shared that this hospital had a great Dr / director.  In fact this was the Dr that Sergey and Anya take kids to from the orphanage or families they are helping .  It is often hard to find a Dr that will treat orphans, but this Dr always helps right away.  We decided to start working here as we are able .  New floors, walls , ceilings , water repairs, and equipment .  

Main hall after repairs 

 the old beds were next ,  they were literally held together with shoe laces , and when you sat on them you would touch the floor.

old beds 

 with the help of the Rotary club, we were able to get them all new beds for the entire hospital.

 Emma and Vlady have continued to do little jobs there , like a new washing machine, and even the first hot water that the hospital has had.  The work has continued.. this is not the same place that it was .

 

 This is also the hospital that abandoned babies are brought to.  There was no budget for baby food, so since 2008 we have provided top quality baby formula for the babies as they arrive.  

This is also a teaching hospital, and is now considered one of the best . 

There are two main Drs that work here , and they are now running off there feet .  Word has spread that this hospital has been renovated and has new equipment .  People have started coming from all over the valley, and even as far as Kazakhstan to be cared for here .  This has created a new problem .  The line of people lined up waiting to be helped often extends down the hall and out the door as parents come to wait for a chance to be seen by the Dr's 

This leads to the reason for this post.  We would like to build a proper exam room, washroom and waiting room for them.  Its just wrong to see parents and sick kids standing in a line out in the elements .. We have come up with a plan to add a small exam room and waiting room on to the front of the hospital .    The rooms in side are completely full, in fact they have children many times down the halls of both this hospital and a neighboring hospital .

 we have come up with a few different plans, but what ever we do we figure that we can build to suit for $10 000.  

The problem is that trying to find a person or group to pass this need off to is difficult when you get to projects of this size.   Today I was having lunch with Sam from iam1ru and he said something .  He shared that his new t-shirts will have  weR >1  on them  ... It was a great reminder for me .  This is something that we have walked out for a long time .. and now more then ever this is true.. This is not going to be a project that just one person does.. its a little too big to hand off to a team to raise the funds for, but if WE together step up, I know that we can do this .    If you would like to help with this , please use the donate buttons on the side of this blog, and put hospital in the memo line .  another way to help is if you could spread the word , maybe your friends , Church, service club, or business would be interested in joining in this project.

I want to leave you with a photo of Dr Anara and one of her babies. I love this photo because you can see the love in her expression, one so powerful that this lost and abandoned baby knows she is loved .   

meetings meetings and more meetings

Today we met up with Sam .  He is the director of Possibilities International .  We had a great meeting , planing and scheming up lots of cool things for the up coming months when Bekah returns to Kyrgyzstan, and Sam arrives with a team to put some wind into her sails.  Sam was on his way up north to build a volley ball court for a summer camp.  You can follow more of what Bekah and Sam are up to over at www.iam1ru.com

Today we started work on a couple playgrounds in Kyrgyzstan, as well we have begun a new homeless support group

with Jengish and a few  of his friends.   Lots on the go.
Next week we will be in Brantford with some of the team that will be coming this fall from there.  The girls will be in Cobden  ( in the Ottawa Valley ) and then the next week we will be heading for  Halifax where we will meet up with Ed Dickson and  have some meetings, and then get together with a team from Rock Church that will be coming to KG in the fall.

We are really excited to be helping to host 4 teams this fall .  It should be a great time, and a true blessing to the people of Kyrgyzstan . 

Keeping Jengish busy

Just because we have not been in Kyrgyzstan for a few weeks does not mean that things have slowed down for Jengish, in fact they have picked up a bit .  Along with following up on some of the things we were working on , like helping our friend Kinja here .  she is out of the hospital after the operation on her leg, and she is doing great .. she is so very thankful for the help that she received .

      Just before we left, we made connection with OSCE.  the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.   Jengish will be working closely with them this summer in an initiative to bring a "friendly face " to the police cervices in Kyrgyzstan.     They are starting with the police station near us.  an old out building on the police yard is being torn down right now to make room for a community center that will include among other things, a homeless shelter, a free clinic and youth counseling and supports.  can you see the fit ?  We are very excited to see where this will lead.  As the major construction begins on the new building, we are committing to fixing up the existing gazebo, as well as revamping and building a playground.  We are even exploring the idea of running an "Art in the Park" program that will be a small art camp with Emma each week .  The idea is to turn the grounds into a safe place for kids to come and play and hang out, as well as help with building a positive relationship between the police and the community .  As well, this project we hope will provide a great base for our workers to call home .. a place to meet and connect with those that they are trying to help.    As soon as the funds are in , $500 for repairs and $300 for the out door furniture , we will begin the work in hopes of being  ready to begin classes as soon as we arrive in August.   The rest of the playground equipment we will work on as money is available .
any donations that come in saying "police" in the memo box will be directed to this project, and Jengish will over see the disbursement.  
   

Location of new community playground 

roof repairs among other  repairs needed .

Another project that Jengish is working on is the homeless initiative .  He has a few volunteers in place now, and would like to start a regular work with the homeless .. they would be out on the streets working to bring food, basic medical and clothing, as well they will work to find positive solutions to the situations as far as housing and long term care .  For this project we would like to have monthly sponsorship totaling $200 a month.  if you are interested in helping with this , please put " homeless" on the memo on the monthly pay pal page .

Great day on the course.

 We had a great day yesterday at the golf tournament in support of missions in Kyrgyzstan. 

This fall, this group of friends will be sending a team of people over to Kyrgyzstan, and the proceeds from the tournament will go toward  the project expenses.  We had a great turn out of golfers, and the day could not have been much better .  So many of those attending have not only supported for years now, but many of them have been to Central Asia with us or our friends from Possibilities International    .  What an encouragement it was for us to spend a day with so many great supporters...  we were blessed 

Emma loading up everyone's carts with goodies for the day 

Cal  was the chief organizer of the event 

Dan assisted Cal and was the MC for the event 

Jamie ( in the middle ) organized the meal 

not only that , they gave out apples and Banana's .. if felt a bit like Kyrgyzstan  haha

Tamara Prosser made these cool cupcakes for the supper .. in fact there were all kinds of cupcakes and butter tarts provided by many of the ladies in the church 

P Ron was back for the day .. here with Jamie at the display table .. the pink boards behind them are the "Burden boards" of those we work with in Kyrgyzstan .. they each shared the burden that they have been carrying , and what their dreams are for the future ..  

thank you again to Norwood Foodland for donating the turkey and stuffing for the meal 

Two of the winners from the days event .. Cal and Cal .. father and son team .. I think they finished with 6 under par.

This next video is what happens when you don't know the video is running as the camera hangs around your neck.