NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2005 The Chance of Giving

        The last month of the year 2005, December, was also the last month when the gates of „Joseph” House were opened for the children in need in Iasi. The financial difficulties were the reason for interrupting the „Joseph” House project - of offering shelter, food and protection for the children in need.

        That is why this month our work concentrated on finding the best solution for each of the 13 children still in our care. We succeeded in finding foster families for 5 of them. But, unfortunately, for the rest of 8 children we could not find a better solution then to solicitate the Social Assistence Center to move them into other shelters for children in need in Iasi.

        Another important activity of this month was the Christmas festival – festivity organized by our foundation by the end of every year. This activity is very complex and we prepare it for weeks with care and minutely. There have been invited all „Joseph” children, all the children helped by Joseph Foundation ever since its 13 years of activity: both children in foster families, adopted children, children reintegrated in their natural or enlarged families.

        The festival reprezented a good moment to strike the balance of our work. We felt proud and grateful when looking at the children and remembered of each of the more then 150 children who have passed through our House. We saw them happy and smiling angelically when entering the hall, hand in hand with their new parents, and nothing showed the disperation and the tears they had had in their eyes and souls when we first meet them. Their serene faces were astonished when seeing the Christmas tree and the pile of presents waiting for them.

        The show was opened by the 12 children still under the care of Joseph House. They managed in overpassing the sadness of knowing they had to leave the House and the uncertainty related to their future and prepared a short play about the importance and the real meaning of Christmas.

        The appearance of Santa was welcome with lots of excitement among both children and adults. Santa called each child on stage and we were happy to see that all of them received wonderful presents, this meaning that they have been good children for the whole year.

        The show was animated by a professional team of dancers in Iasi. The carols sang by an italian chorus greatly contributted to complete the Christmas atmosphere, making us feel like a very large family during Christmas Eve night, who open their door to carol singers and listen to them telling a story about the birth of a poor child (like them), in a manger in Bethleem.

        But the most touching moments have been offered by our children, who stepped up on the stage, one by one, and told Santa a poem or sang a song receiving presents and applause in return.

        The true reward of our work was to see that our efforts managed in changing these children lives, turning them for the best. We proudly present you a few comparative photos, talking by themselves about this important change. The photos tell more then the words could say, because they show the way children were when we first saw them and the way they are now.

        Neither of these would have been possible whithout the help of our sponsors.

We want to thank to all our sponsors, to all those wonderful persons who permitted us be the intermediary of their love for children in need.