Student Pics

TIME FOR ENGLISH

Well, now that I am back, here are some photos of the students, new and old! So far the new class is all guys, eight of them, which means that the boys house is full with Andrey still living there. The three guy grads have moved into their apartment, which has a real electricity hookup as of Wednesday, When they moved in a couple weeks ago they still had to use the extension cord from the neighbor's house we used during construction. They were cooking once a day at the nearby new house group home, the one remodeled the year before.



The new guys were all very excited when I handed out Winnipeg Jets hats and gloves that the team brought from Steinbach last spring. All but one guy posed for photos.

You will notice we are having class in our new large room which is in the other side of the building where the apartments for the grads are. This is the building remodeled by the teams from Steinbach and Salmon Arm this spring. Pretty much everything is finished in the classroom and two apartments, the ones the guys and girls are living in. The small studio apartment will not be used this year.

the outside of the building

Two of the boys, Samson ( another Kolya) and Dima, designed and built steps for the classroom. Garry plans to add a deck back here someday. Maria took a photo of them on their handiwork the first day of school.

Samson, Dima and two Loshas
(one is going by Alexi which is the name that Losha is the nickname for) 

Interesting fact: we discovered our original Kolya has siblings because he has twin brothers Misha (he likes Micheal in English class, he told me) and Vasili, or Vashsa who joined us this year. They look and sound very much like him, but they are not as tall.

The twins with Dima

Kolya goofing around with Vasili for the camera

This week Luba and Vova hosted male and female only night at their respective houses on Tuesday. I attended the girls one and got some photos.
 There was food, fun and crafts, and a talk about how men and women are different.(Maria translated for me).

Luba during her talk

The girls did quilling and made hearts

How do you do it?

 Vika, one of this month's birthday girls, is 20

Her sister Oksana turned 19 a week later

Night school

Garry sent me a few photos of the students

Here's the nine (six second year and three grads- I see Sasha, Julia and Karina) at their night school class, they have class three times a week in Dnepro. Looks like Andrey, Ira, Oksana in the front row. Vika, Julia Valentina and Leila right behind them.

It looks like Garry is teaching hoof trimming to the second year students, just like last year. I assume the first year students are starting with dairy cattle judging and learning the parts of a cow.

New school year

Pizza party

Garry has started the new school year this week with the students. We have seven boys in the first year of the program, and eight students returning for the second year.
 We have been looking for a way to get the students better diplomas, and the village school was not an option because they are over 18 and  have handicapped on their passports. Everyone in Ukraine over the age of 16 carries a passport which is an official ID document, not for leaving the country. This week they found a school in Dnepro so the second year students can upgrade their diplomas. They will be traveling to Dnepro several times a week to study starting Thursday. Garry said our graduates, Julia and Karina want to go too.
Why? Almost all of our students came out of "handicapped" orphanages and did not get a full education, but if they get regular grade nine diplomas they will be eligible to go to any trade school they want next year.

Summertime

At the "new" girls house, peeling potatoes and chopping dill

What do the students do all summer? Well, the boys and Karina have been doing some extra work during hay and straw making time (they do get a bonus in pay for this, if you wonder). All the students work in the barn helping with milking about 5 times a week each, when they are in the village and they help out with household chores and gardening at their houses. Sometimes they help Victor with the bee hives, too.

Helping with the frames for the hives, they were putting in new wire

 Often the students head to the pond for a swim around 5 pm, and we have had a few hot dog roasts there this summer, in July we had marshmallows, too.

 Many of our students have been away for a week or two this summer visiting friends and family, mostly more distant relatives, or foster families, but  Ira spent two weeks with her mother and siblings in July.

In the middle of August, while we were in Canada, most of the students and group home families were away for a week of church camp near the sea.

Busy student life

Svitaslav and his foster dad on the couch

Our newest student for the coming fall, Svitaslav, arrived last week while we were gone. He came from a Christian foster home and visited here with his foster dad about two weeks ago, they came on the train from the eastern region. His foster father knows both of our group home dads. I had never met anyone by that name, Victor tells me it is an old-fashioned name, we aren't sure what we will call him, most Ukrainians have nicknames.

They had lunch with us (and Maria), and the dad said the soup was good
because there was more meat than potatoes

Student Saturday church choir is directed by group home mom Luda

Two of the girls at the "new house" have celebrated birthdays recently, with parties with food and cake, Valentina's 21st birthday fell on a Saturday, so they celebrated after student church.

Valentina last summer

 That's Valentina, the taller girl in purple. She has really bloomed since arriving and starting dental work and braces last winter. She has always had a ready giggling laugh.

Valentina now

Kristina celebrated her 19th birthday on Thursday. She brought Garry and I a little cake when we got back from Hungary because we missed the celebration.

Maria brought our present to the party. Kristina is a very pretty and popular girl, who came to us from a Christian group home. She hopes to student at a vet school after she finishes here next year.

There are some other new residents at the group homes this summer.

 Here is Milka the heifer from the new house, the girls can walk right up to her and hug her in the field with the village herd. Oxana is with her here, but all of the girls do it. her sister Vika has a dozen pictures on her phone with Milka.

The new house got two baby potbelly pigs last week.

Mowing day at the boys house

The boys house has bought baby chicks, they are the ones with no feathers on their necks.


We have another prospective male student visiting later this week, so we have three guys for next year so far... and Luba, I guess since she was only here about two months of last year... and the six girls and Andrey for year two.





The girls at the new house were busy with a lot of dill when we stopped in with visitors yesterday. The students work at home in the house and the gardens too.

Vika is peeling potatoes...

then she fed the peels to the piglets

End of class picnic

Luba and group home mom Larissa

It looks like it was a great time for everyone at the picnic at the pond. There was lots of games and food. No one except Garry had roasted hot-dogs over a fire before on a stick.

Only Max, his brother Artrem and the two group home dads
Jumped in the pond 

Happy birthday Ira

Ira's birthday was yesterday , and they had a party at her group  home.. She was 20years old. She's from from the same orphanage as many of e fist year students. The. director asked Garry to take her because her paperwork says that she has cerebral palsy and she didn't want her to be in an adult orphanage.  Her mother gave her up but has two other children at home.

Ira's smart and a little sarcastic. She does have problems walking because of her handicap,  she falls sometimes. However, she does everything the others do, even milking and feeding the cows- just a little slower.