“I’m smelling the sweet smell of change in the air!"

Dear folks, friends, and family,
 
To borrowing from one of our most dedicated mentors Nastya,  “I smell change coming!"

Tomorrow is a big day for our YouthReach International orphan outreach ministry in the former Soviet Union. It’s a particularly big day for our team operating in Simferopol. 

Tony Morrow, Rob Browne, and the staff at YRI are preparing to submit grant proposals to acquire the funds we so desperately need to elevate our ministry to the next level. 

Last week, I was asked  by Tony and & Rob to “dream big” and gather ideas for growing our programs in Simferopol. I can’t say a whole lot right now about the details. Just know that we received some excellent feedback from our team mates/mentors on ways to bolster the work going being done with orphans in that city and begin to fill critical gaps in our ministry.

Please be prayerful over the next several weeks regarding this giant step forward. We need wisdom and guidance from the Holy Spirit. Please be praying that the submissions say the right things, that the right eyes review it, and the right hands stamp the approvals. 

Peace and grace,
Joel


Visit our December mission trip team funding site to help us make a difference in the lives of at-risk orphans in Sinferopol Ukraine. Deadline is Nov. 1. We’re only 25% of our needed funds. Please help us today.

Michael Neill Shares About 12-3-1 Mentoring in Novosibirsk, Russia

I received this originally as an email this morning about Michael Neill of College Park, GA. Mike explains a little bit about his experience as a YouthReach volunteer in Novosibirsk Russia.

Michael Neill live in College Park, GA, and is the President of Michael Neill and Associates, Inc.  He is the author of two books, Creating and Maintaining a Credit Union Sales and Service Culture, and Coaching for Performance. Additionally, Mike is one of the most sought after speakers in the Credit Union Movement. 

Though I had given to specific people for their short term trips with YouthReach International, my first to Novosibirsk, Russia, was in February of 2012. The trip was focused on equipping the volunteer mentors that make up the YouthReach International team in Novosibirsk. I was encouraged by the mentors and their commitment to follow Christ as 1^st generation Christians. This is done in an environment that often exacts a price for following Christ. These believers do not follow Christ “underground.” They follow Christ not only with their words but in their actions. They profess the risen Savior by living their lives transformed by the cross. These mentors sacrifice their time and resources for the children in the orphanage where the immediate results of their efforts are not always evident. However, the call of the message of Timothy to “Pure Religion,” is very real to them. I feel compelled to support this work as I see their commitment to live for Christ.YouthReach has a tremendous vision that is backed by an impressive infrastructure that provides confidence that the resources I share with YouthReach are being used wisely and effectively to impact young people for Christ. Additionally, knowing the Christ-connectedness of the YouthReach leadership ensures that the vision of YouthReach International is led by the Holy Spirit. Everything I have seen and experienced is done excellently, in and by the love of Christ.
Mike Neill is part of the team changing orphan's lives in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.  Do you want to stand with Mike on that team?  If so, consider donating now by clicking here:

TeamSim funding site

General YouthReach Donation

Sasha Goes to Kiev

Sasha (right) and Ira.

Tomorrow, our beloved Sasha ( Marizza Pechen'ko) will be traveling to Kiev to attend a training seminar hosted by One Hope. She departs at 2:30 p.m. Simferopol time (6:30 a.m. our time)

Each Spring, orphans age-out of the orphanage system at age 17 with little or no practical  life skills. This training provides learning modules focused on teaching orphans during their last year at the orphanage. The modules include:

Module 1: Identity (who am I and how can I develop each part of my personality)
Module 2: Social Skills (how to relate to others, manage conflicts and use good manners)
Module 3: Health and Hygiene (nutrition, hygiene, bad habits, first aid)
Module 4: Love and Sex (respect in friendship and girls/boys relationships, the purpose of sexual relationships and their possible consequences)
Module 5: Gift of Marriage (things to consider before you agree to get married, way to express love and deal with disagreements in marriage)
Module 6:  Raising Children (how to create a family, be a positive parent and know child’s needs)
Module 7: Homemaking (food shopping and cooking, taking care of your home and clothing, hospitality)
Module 8: Time and Money Management (what life costs and how to budget; how to manage time)
Module 9: Job Skills (profession orientation, how to find and keep a job, the risk of human trafficking)
Module 10:  Legal Rights (human rights, orphan’s rights, law and the consequences of its breaking).

Our goal in the coming year is to help equip our team of 12-3-1 mentors so that they can, in turn, equip others. Sasha's participation is merely the first of many opportunities we hope and pray God will open for the team. Not only will the rest of our team mentors benefit from this knowledge and training but also orphanage staff, teachers, caretakers and workers will learn how to better prepare kids for real life outside the orphanage system. Sharing could also extend to those mentoring orphans through other organizations working in Simferopol and Donetsk.

We'll will be working diligently to connect our 12-3-1 mentors with other individuals, churches, groups, organizations, professionals, and brothers & sisters in Christ who are also ministering to orphans not only in Ukraine but in other countries as well. This helps to speed and facilitate the proliferation and exchange of knowledge, creating added awareness of the plight of orphans worldwide.

Please be in prayer over Sasha as she travels overnight by train. This can be somewhat dangerous for a girl traveling alone. Although Sasha is very street-wise the potential for harm always exists.

Also be in prayer over Anya Goliakova. She currently is suffering from a serious infection that requires 3 shots of antibiotic each day. She was to have traveled to Kiev with Sasha but is under Doctor's orders to remain at home.

I'm excited about the things God is doing in Simferopol among his people.

Peace and grace.

P.S. Sasha will be working with Vika Vdovichenko (also a YRI TeamSim 12-3-1 Mentor) building a Social Outreach Center in Simferopol ministering to low-income college students, trade school students (mostly orphans), orphanage graduates, and orphans. She must raise support for her monthly salary. Want to no more? Email me if you want to help.

Three Sisters...Meet Lena

LENA

This is Lena. She is one of  three sisters living at the children's home in Simferopol, Ukraine. Lera (13), Lena (11), and Sasha(8) are some of the sweetest, most beautiful kids I've ever met. I've known these girls since 2009.

This summer, Lena opened up to me especially, as well as her 12-3-1 mentors more than any previous trip. She never said much to me. She just walked up extended her arms up. I'd pick her up and her arms would go around my neck. I would lift her up and squeeze her tight as her skinny legs dangled and swayed back and forth.

These kids I see season after season are amazing. They're my friends. The life they live isn't fair. They deserve better. I know what awaits them when they leave the orphanage system at 17:  helplessness, hopelessness, loneliness, despair resulting in substance and alcohol abuse, probable prostitution, petty crime, victimization, prejudice, even violence and possible suicide.

LERA

In December, Christy Blazer and I are hoping to return to Simferopol to continue our work building relationships between our team's 12-3-1 Mentors and these three girls and many like them .

 Please help us get there. We need $3400 each. 50% by Oct 1 and another 50% by November 1.

Visit our TeamSim funding website today. Enter Christy's name or my name in the field and click "Search".

SASHA

You can also mail your tax-deductible check donation to:

YouthReach International
1911 Grayson Hwy, Suite 8-344, Grayson, GA 30017
(Please add a note with the name of the person you wish to sponsor.)

I believe there are those who are called to "GO" and those who are called to "SEND". Christy and I will go we're asking you to send.

Make a FOREVER difference in the life of an at-risk orphaned child TODAY!

Peace and grace
Joel

Just a Glimpse

Sometimes you get a glimpse of where you're going - where God is leading. He gave me such a glimpse.

I’ve been returning each year since 2008 to Simferopol to serve the orphans there but more importantly our 12-3-1 Mentors and YRI partners in Simferopol. It’s these dedicated people who serve orphans year-round. I’ve seen that orphan ministry is NOT about Americans going overseas to minister to orphans.

Rather it is about provisioning, equipping, preparing and spiritually maturing local Ukrainian Christians to serve orphans in their own language, in their own country, in the context of their own culture.

In 2008, I met three wonderful young women of God at a summer camp called Setera. It was located on the Black Sea, not far from the historic coastal resort city of Yalta. Since that time I have been so blessed by the friendships God established between Nastya Skovorodnykova, Anya Goliakova, Vika Vdovichenko and I.

We spent many tear-filled late-night hours talking about the best and worst parts of each day. They shared many of their fears about the kids we were serving and what would happen to them without the broad social network of friends and family to support them.

Since then, these three young women have emerged as community leaders in the orphan outreach ministry in Simferopol, the capital city of the Crimea; the southernmost region in Ukraine.

The December 2012 Mission: I’m actively recruiting a team to return to Simferopol in December, 2012. We’ll be ministering to the children living in two orphan facilities — Detskyi Dom (DD), a 50-bed children’s home and Gagarin School for Girls. We’ve worked in both of these facilities. The Gagarin School serves about 75-90 orphaned girls (ages 5-17) as well as girls from low-income homes. We’ll be focusing more on supporting this facility in the future.

Ourfunding campaign for this trip is, to say the least, aggressive.

Each team member will need to raise $3400 for the trip. We will need to raise 50% by Oct 1 and 100% by Nov 1.

Team Funding Site: Go to
http://youthreach.kintera.org/teamsim2012

In addition we’ll be asking for support for the expenses of one of our team’s Ukrainian 12-3-1 Mentors (more later on this).

I’m praying you will all be considering supporting us as we share Christ with approximately 100-125 at-risk and orphaned children at the start of this year’s holiday season in Simferopol, Ukraine.

Stay logged in! More news coming soon!

Peace and Grace,
Joel