Time with Savva youth

Posted by Olya Cherevko, Youth Impact Manager

Once a month we go to Savva orphanage to meet with the graduates and talk about something that may help them after they leave the orphanage. Last month we talked about good manners, listening skills, bullying, and how to deal with boredom and loneliness.

This month we held a seminar about trust with graduates. We asked Tursynai, one of the orphanage graduates, to help conduct the seminar. We started with trust building activities and had a discussion. Some kids overcame their fear and showed trust, others found this more challenging- explaining that it depended on a person and situation.

Tursynay led another activity that required team work. It was a very difficult activity since it required organization, leadership and energy. One team won because they were well organized and some were really ambitious who helped those who were tired and together they reached their goal.

This activity helped youth realize that a person sometimes is not able to reach the goal alone, it requires a team effort of people who can help and support. Tursynay also shared about her life when she left the orphanage and the difficulties she went through and how she overcame them. She told about her strong and weak points, failures and successes in her study and life. She explained that anyone can reach their goal with or without parents if they work hard and believe it is possible. One child asked Tursynay, “How did you stay strong going through all the difficulties?” Tursynay replied, “What kept me from giving up is God and my persistence.”