A present from CCF Ukraine for teenagers in Ivano-Frankivsk
Where can a teenager spend free time in a small town? Moreover, in a town, where most adults work outside the region, so that parents of many children are unable to look after them most of the time. In Ivano-Frankivsk there is such a place, called the Oasis club, set up for teenagers at the Positron factory with support of the CCF Ukraine. In this club children can spend their free time in the games room, take part in trainings, chat with friends during ‘Hours of Free Thoughts'. They can also get advice from a psychologist, to organize a birthday celebration, to carry out their own initiatives. Teenagers living in the district, formed a youth group, which started many interesting initiatives; for example, to clean up the playgrounds near the club. Children described their club in these words: ‘everyone visits the club; there is a lot of fun here, laughter and games for all'.
CCF Ukraine takes part in the fight against HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ukraine
There is a lot of talking about HIV/AIDS. Unfortunately, talking about the problem, passing various resolutions and decrees do not give any noticeable positive results. All should unite their efforts to succeed.
The creation of a multidisciplinary team in the framework of the ‘Partnership for the Improvement of HIV Prevention and Care in the Context of Social Education in Ukraine' project was the first step in preventing HIV/AIDS.
Together with teachers, medical specialists, psychologists, and social workers CCF Ukraine also made other steps in fight against HIV/AIDS - a unique training course on structural prevention has been prepared for students of social work/pedagogy department at Lutsk State University, a program of activities has been approved at a meeting of representatives of state structures and NGOs from Dnipropetrovsk; and an original method for lowering risks for injecting drug-users has been developed in Sevastopol.
CCF Ukraine found foster parents for an orphan girl
Alina lived at a boarding school; she was invited to the Summer Classes for foster children held in the framework of a CCF project called "Reforming Childcare System in Ukraine through Development of Foster Families'.
Classes' atmosphere, communications with other children and adults have changed quiet and reserved Alina. It is here that she met her future foster family. After living for 3 years at the boarding school she is now the foster daughter of Svitlana Palamarchuk and Serhiy Kharchuk, who took an active part in the project of the Christian Children's Fund.
At present she and her foster parents are thinking over taking into the family another girl from the boarding school, a friend of Alina.
CCF Ukraine helped a family to become a foster family
After taking part in CCF training Mr. and Mrs. K started to collect necessary documents to get permission to become a foster family. They were sure that they could easily get this permission from officials and take a child from a children's home. They had higher education, positive recommendations from social welfare specialists, and an approval from the director of the children's home; still they could not get the permission. Their flat could not meet the standards - its total area was one square meter short of the required number. For a year and a half with support of the CCF, the local department for affairs of families and youth, and the youth social services center the family tried to convince the officials in their willingness and ability to create a family environment for an orphan. At last they succeeded, and at present two years old Denis knows for sure that he has mother and father. He says these words with child's frankness and one could see joy in his eyes...
CCF Ukraine training programs help parents to solve problems they have with their children
The Demurs family was an ordinary young family and had its share of problems with their daughter Nikelina. The young parents were not always sure that they acted right and that they said to their daughter the right words when they tried helping her to understand the world better. Mutual understanding was not always there. Participation in the CCF training on early child development not only helped them to realize themselves as ‘a real mother' and ‘ a real father', to understand one another and their child better and find agreement among themselves, but also increased their self-esteem and encouraged them to take a conscious decision to have another child. They still do not know if the child will be a boy or a girl, but they all already love this child and are waiting for him or for her...
