“I’ve never met an ordinary human” C.S. Lewis
A D AT D D R E S IA L INK S: Ciu MOLDA ROMA rchi VIA NIA 46, TE Iasi , Ro 004 LEPHO m 0 72 ania 8 44 NE 4 52 1 00 FACSI M 40 2 32 2 ILE 39 1 00 FUN
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August 2015
Issue 8, New Edition
www.linkromania.ro
LIVING WORSE THAN THE LAST YEAR
THANK YOU!
WHEN RESOURCES BECOME SCARCE EVERY MONTH
BECAUSE YOU ALL HELP US GIVE THEM A BETTER LIFE!
There are so interesting developments going on over the years… From one year to the other, it seems that instead of reducing the quantity of work due to the hoped decrease of difficulties of the people, we find ourselves more and more challenged by the different facets of needs that appear in the lives for whom we work with. For example, we hoped that by joining the European Community, the life of the homeless and the poor will improve. The foundations of those hopes were the facts that more money will be available, more businesses will thrive, and more jobs will be available. But instead of those dreams coming true, we have found ourselves surprised by the exodus of the Romanians due to the poor economy and the economic collapse that is happening at least here, in the far Eastern part of Europe. And those who hoped that could be independent by owning a horse and cart and carrying goods noticed in horror that they are not allowed anymore to travel legally on the Romanian roads. The drought and the decreasing water resources have also made people to realize that agriculture as it used to be is useless. They all say that they planted a few bags of onions, potatoes or beans, and in best case scenario they will be able to crop half of what they have planted. There is a father who ha payed his electricity bill by selling the fruits of his trees, telling his hungry children to not touch the fruits as it is the only guarantee that they will have electricity (light). "
A girl playing with toys we delivered to her.
The homeless couple Cătălin and Isaura having their wedding at the end of this winter.
Wood for fencing.
So we try as much as possible to give them, as we say, a mouth of oxygen, with the kind help of supporters like you. The needs are great… There is a lady in her fifties, mother of 16, whose lungs and heart are in very bad condition. She would need medicine worth of about 140 Sterling Pounds per month. She is not entitled to get any help from the Romanian government, because the system here is that if somebody is not employed and paying taxes, cannot benefit financially when in trouble. And our list can go on and on…
Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46, Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www,linkromania.ro
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Continue to buy the building materials BUILDING HOMES We have continued to buy the building materials for the house we have started the last year. Rﾄホvan and Beatrice, the owners of it, try to earn their living by selling chicken and watermelon. Unfortunately, due to the low price of goods at the hypermarkets, it is almost impossible to earn a profit in this business. So they borrowed money with an interest rate of 30% monthly. They borrowed 2,000 Ron for a month, and bought merchandise. After they sold their merchandise, they had an income of only 1,700 Ron, obviously not enough even to pay back the borrowed amount, without mentioning the interest. So we helped them buying 60 chicken, and we donated the chicken to other people to raise them and have food for a while. Beatrice has been helping us with the Roma children we worked during some summer school projects led by British visitors.
We continued to buy the building materials for the house we started the last year.
The Christian magazine A NEW PROJECT STARTING EASTER 2015
For those of you who know my daughter, you will be
surprised to see her on the cover of our Christian magazine, dealing with the relevant issues of the Romanian and international cultures. We managed to distribute it in over 300 places all over Romania, and there are over 100 people reading the online version daily, on both Facebook and website! We decided to do it every second month, so the JulyAugust issue that it is on the shelves will be followed by the September-October issue. It is so encouraging to see a mixed, Romanian and foreign team of authors, designers, artists working/volunteering together for the good and strengthening of their community. We have been also kindly sponsored with high quality tshirts by a company called Spreadshirt (www.spreadshirt.co.uk). "
Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46 Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www.linkromania.ro
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Rebuilding a room of a family of a single-father with seven children 16 students from England did their best, successfully!
We have used brand new white blocks and quality materials, laying the layers on a brand solid foundation, that we filled afterwards with concrete.
The room they had was not possible to be used for living, and not even for keeping goods there.
The fence that we made has over 40 meters, and was not easy to dig the holes for the posts, as the soil was very strong due to the lack of rain.
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Before.
After.
Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46 Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www.linkromania.ro
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Education and development WORKING AT HIGH TEMPERATURES OF AROUND 40 CELSIUS DEGREES Buying building materials for different families, fencing materials, food parcels, summer school - this is how we almost complete this summer s projects. Nobody could believe that there are still children - and adults for sure - who still do not know how to use the mobile stairways in the malls. This is what happened to one of the children we took to
McDonalds in Iasi. I do not believe that this issue has a life and death importance, but it clearly shows how little these people travel, and how difficultly they adjust to the modern life. The same child did not know what cartoons are - and I could not explain him either. I just left him alone watching them, to figure it out alone what are they.
Wood for the completion of the building in Slobozia.
wood for the fence.
The children whose room has been totally rebuilt.
Distributing food and notebooks for school.
The food parcel that it is prepared to be taken to a family.
A poor familys home.
Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46 Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www.linkromania.ro
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Summer school in Slobozia.
Coming to summer school by horse.
THE BEST INVESTMENT YOU CAN MAKE The best investment an adult person could do is in the education of children. Interestingly enough, those that we worked with involved wholeheartedly in the project, games and songs, despite the high temperatures that made life very difficult. So we had to deal from time to time with their thirst, as well as with the huge amount of energy that they had. In Erbiceni it was great sowing a seed of faith in people that are almost 100% religiously illiterate. They did not know basic
information regarding Christmas and the birth of Jesus, so any �sophisticated� stories would have not been understood. It is s painful to watch them, when we take life seriously. What will they do in a few years time? How will they deal with issues of faith? What place will Christianity have in their hearts when they will grow old? What jobs will they have if the village will not be able anymore to offer them the means for living?
Our bank account in Great Britain: Lloyds TSB Branch: Littlehampton Account no: 01681355, and Sort code: 30-95-09 Cheques payable to: FLRM, 50, Bryce Crescent, Currie Edinburgh EH14 5LL
VISIT US AT: WWW.LINKROMANIA.RO An average of 20-26 children waited for us every morning. And this is not a posed photo.
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Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46 Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www.linkromania.ro
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Serving the Roma communities BY TEACHING THE BIBLE, SUPPORTING THEIR HOMELESS, AND HANDING OUT FOOD & CLOTHES I try reminding our supporters that despite all the headaches the Roma people cause to the communities, there still are good people among them, who would desperately want a normal life, with basic food on the table, medicine for their illnesses, and basic jobs for their children. Unfortunately that is not happening in most of the families. They life is an
everyday struggle, fighting with poverty and sickness. That is why your help could do miracles. Like in the story of the star fish: ”For this one it means a lot”. The food parcel they get, the accommodation they are blessed with, the medicine that is relieving pain - all of these can happen because of you teaming up
Giving food parcels to families.
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Working with the teenagers in Erbiceni, and trying to hide in a little shade.
with us, and serve our Lord, as He commanded: ”If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. (James 2:15-17 KJV)
For more than 3 days in a row we had to work at 43 Celsius degrees.
Playing with children.
Fundatia Link Romania Moldavia, str. Ciurchi 46 Iasi, Romania | 0040 728 444 521 | www.linkromania.ro