We had a chat with our new psychologist Olga Zhdanova, and asked for her impressions of life in the Love’s Bridge centers:

It’s winter and getting colder by the day… but in the centers it always seems cozy and warm. That is thanks to the children who come to us every day: their energy knows no bounds, their enthusiasm, curiosity and desire to be around us and with each other is overwhelming. I love observing the children growing and changing every day, right before our eyes. They learn to be organized and responsible young people. But we must always bear in mind that they are still children! We should not expect them to become too serious!

Taking the age and background of the children into consideration, we have to be careful in choosing our methods of working with them. For example, when talking about health problems, trying to strike fear into them is absolutely pointless! Talking about the terrible consequences of smoking has absolutely no effect on these children whatsoever. It is only by giving the children a positive example, and educating them on the whole picture of a healthy lifestyle, that they are empowered to make choices for themselves that will positively impact their own future, and their families too. We do our best to help each child learn and develop at their own speed, and most importantly, enable them to know when and how they are going in the right direction! It is only through this independence that they can improve themselves, their situation, and their future chances in life.

Knowledge is Power!

This fall yet another project was added to the diverse Love’s Bridge portfolio. The kids involved came up the name “Healthy and Happy” for the project, which is aimed at raising awareness of health issues that affect young people.

We gathered a group of vulnerable 14-18 year-olds experiencing various difficulties in their lives – some are struggling at school, others are not attending school at all. Some have emotional problems, mild learning difficulties and some face various domestic problems at home, such as alcoholism, violence and neglect.

They meet every week in a small group with Love’s Bridge staff where they learn a great deal about protecting themselves from serious health issues. More importantly they are also being trained to be inform their friends and peers on the health problems and risks they face every day.

Once the group is fully trained we plan to visit other local schools and speak to more at-risk teenagers about these problems, and we hope that being in the same age group, our young volunteers will be able to get the message across even more effectively than we would by ourselves!

A world turned upside down

Dima came to our center with his mother, whose thin and exhausted face said it all. She was clearly feeling at the end of her rope, and had come to the center in desperate need of support. As she spoke, a picture emerged of the family’s situation. A single mother, she had recently brought her two sons to the city from a village in one of the remote parts of the Perm region. She had managed to rent a room for her family, and had got a job working in a school canteen. Dima’s father lived separately and provided neither financial nor moral support. She was clearly struggling to provide for her children. Dima, aged twelve, was thin and very small for his age. His clothes looked entirely inappropriate for the cold weather outside. He was extremely timid, but pleasant and polite. The family’s struggle to find their feet in the city was clearly reflected in Dima’s problems at school – he was barely passing any of his school tests and assignments.

Immediately we started working to discover Dima’s interests and invited him to take part in “School without Lessons”. He was assigned a mentor who would work on his Math and English. Once Dima started regularly visiting, we saw his confidence gradually grow, and his obvious pleasure at being welcomed at the center. He started taking part in other activities, and proved himself a trustworthy and responsible teenager. He has started making friends, although this has been a slow process as his shyness has been quite inhibiting.

One of the greatest joys of the project is being able to treat every child as an individual. With each tiny step we see Dima moving towards his goals. As such a small and specialized organization we are also able to keep up regular contact with Dima’s mother, and offer her help and support in bringing up her children. We are proud of the progress Dima makes every day, and know that by the end of the school year, he will not only find the confidence to do well at school, but also to make friends and make his way in the world.

The Perfect Match!

We work with a variety of ages, from kids who have barely started school and are already in trouble, to teenagers on the verge of adulthood yet still need support.  We are always on the lookout for ways to enable the children to help themselves… and each other!

This autumn we started activities for a group of 7-10 year olds from a nearby orphanage that cares for children with learning disabilities. The group is varied in their abilities – some aren’t able to read, but can draw beautifully! Others watch closely what the teacher is doing, but then forget what to do when they need to work independently. We decided that for this particular group, every child needed an older helper, and enlisted the services of some of the teenagers.

During the sessions, which are usually arts based or related to skills development, the younger children and their new friends have formed lasting bonds. Every child receives the individual attention and support they need, and the small age difference has made it easy for them to relate to one another. The younger children wait for the teenagers with huge excitement, and after the class they often spend time playing outside, listening to music, or just talking. For the teenagers, too, the project has been very successful. They have learned the value of helping others, and the art of being patient and gentle. We hope that this experience will inspire them to help others throughout their lives.

We usually get the group to come to our center, as the change of scenery makes a world of difference to the kids. When we do visit the children in the orphanage, they go mad from the excitement of having visitors. They want to show us every single thing they own, from photographs to colored pencils to tiny little souvenirs.

It has been a pleasure to see relationships grow amongst the younger kids and their new found friends. In spending time with the older teens, they can learn about the world outside their orphanage, and, most importantly, escape the isolation of their institution and feel part of a wider community.

Let’s keep it up!

Many thanks to all of those who have made our work possible this year! Special thanks to the S.L.A.T.E. charity and Michael Kerins, who continue to raise funds in Scotland and bring them directly to the project in Perm himself. The kids are always delighted to meet the people who make our projects possible.

If you would like to organize some fundraising for the project, or have already done some, we would love to hear from you!

Thank you again for your support and please give all you can for the kids in Perm – a little goes a long way to brighten the lives of some very needy children.

With the start of the new school year in September came the re-opening of our own “School without Lessons”. Our innovative project, which is now in its third year, is growing from strength to strength. The project coordinator Oksana is now working with 14 pairs of volunteers and children, who work together up to three times a week on a wide variety of school subjects. Our volunteer mentors use a wide range of interactive activities in order to gain their mentees’ interest in the subject, and inspire them to work hard at their subjects.

We have seen great results in the participants’ school grades, and have had very positive responses from participants’ parents and school teachers. We are also working hard to develop relations with local businesses and organizations, and give the participants a taste of what career they might go into with the skills they are developing at school. We are expecting even more children to come to us for help in the coming months, and are always on the look-out for new volunteers!

Work with young offenders

“Nikita is only nine years old, but is already serving a sentence for a serious crime. When I recently spoke to him, he told me with great difficulty about the feelings he was left with after a frightening dream. He dreamt that he was in prison, and had decided to try and escape. He had a moment of terrible realization of the responsibility of his actions and the implications that they were going to have on his future – if he tried to run away he would surely be prosecuted again and would remain in prison for several more years. Upon waking up, Nikita felt a huge sense of relief. He felt happy that he hadn’t made a further mistake which would have had even more of a detrimental effect on his life. Our work with Nikita and other children like him in the Perm Temporary Holding Centre for Young Offenders is vital and pressing. We are able to educate them in the most basic and fundamental way, in the way which their parents failed to do while they were at home. We can show them that even though they have made mistakes it’s possible to turn a corner, and avoid such terrible situations in the future.” – Svetlana Kozlova, Project Coordinator.

Love’s Bridge has been working with young offenders for several years now. The vast majority of those in young offender institutions are there for petty offences such as antisocial behaviour, shoplifting and fighting,  although there is also a small number of children who have been involved in much more serious offences. Young offenders face a myriad of problems, both inside and outside their institutions, and we are often overwhelmed with the difficulties of the tasks set before us. Several years of experience have shown us where our strengths lie in this field, and we are pleased to be further developing relations with more young offender institutions in the region. Our main priorities in this field are:

• Helping young offenders within their institutions adapt to their situations, develop the skills to deal with anger and other emotions, analyze their feelings and successfully resolve conflicts;
• Helping young offenders (particularly those who are in prison for the first time) employ constructive coping strategies to relieve stress; and
• Enabling young offenders to realize the detriment their former lifestyle has had on their situations and motivate them to lead a more positive and constructive lifestyle.

The more celebrations – the better!

Volunteers from around the world have played a huge role in the life of Love’s Bridge, especially when it comes to celebrating different festivals. Halloween has become a much loved day of the year for all of us at the centres, and the children and teenagers take particular delight in this quite unusual day! On Halloween everyone seems to let their hair down, express their feelings and are able to leave all their negative feelings behind and look forward to fun, games and a lot of mess! Our staff and volunteers are able to find their “inner child” on this day, and seem to get as much out of the fun and games as the children do. Together we made costumes, a celebratory Halloween feast and prepared plenty of ghoulish games. For many of the children who come to our centres it is a rare and great opportunity to forget their troubles and enjoy a fantastic party!

So far this summer we have run two thematic urban summer camps dedicated to inspiring and supporting kids who would otherwise be spending the long summer days left to their own devices on the streets. The first camp was a development course aimed at teenagers who have a variety of different personal problems, similar to the work we do throughout the year to help children and teenagers in need to deal with the difficulties that life throws at them. The summer camp gave us the opportunity to work intensively with a small group of teens over the course of two weeks. The course, “The Person I Am”, went through topics such as family and friendship, confidence, conflict resolution and lifestyle issues. The aim of the course was to get the young participants to look at their future and think about their relationships with family, friends and those around them.

Here’s what Denis (13 years old) thought about the camp:

I´ve been coming to the Love´s Bridge center since March. I really like it here. The staff are all very kind. I´ve met lots of new friends here as well. At the start of summer I was invited to come to the city summer camp, every day from Monday to Friday! First we do some exercises to wake up, then do some activities and classes. We can talk to the psychologist if we want. Then we have some food and at the end have all kinds of fun events. I really enjoyed it!

The participants of the second camp were children aged 10-14 years old. We were determined to make the camp not just a nice break for them, but also a platform for learning and involvement in the life of the Love´s Bridge center and the local area. The kids were given the opportunity to volunteer and really improve the center and local vicinity by taking part in ecological campaigns.We were pleased by the response of local people, some of whom even started to help out themselves whilst we were clearing up litter on the bank of the river Kama. We hope that this positive experience will inspire the kids to go on volunteering and taking pride in their city and region.

Volunteer Camp at the Perm-36 Museum

The most highly anticipated event of the summer was without a doubt the second Love´s Bridge volunteer camp at the Perm-36 Museum of the Gulag in the countryside about 120km from the city. Following the success of the camp last year, staff, volunteers and teenagers aged 14-18 years old were keen to get back to the beautiful location and enjoy 10 days of hot sunshine, fresh air and swimming, whilst also contributing to the maintenance of the museum, which is the only one of its kind in all of Russia. The 10 days were spent engaging the group in the general renovation of the museum as well as lots of fun activities. Staff and volunteers organized games and training sessions which helped the teenagers in their personal development, and return to the city refreshed and inspired!

We’d like to share one of our new volunteers’ feedback on the camp:

My volunteering experience with “Love’s Bridge” in a summer youth camp on the territory that used to be a political prison “Perm-36” was my first inside of Russia, as I previously had only volunteered abroad. This made it new and unique, especially because it involved the emotionally difficult work of social adaptation of troubled teenagers. I don’t regret for a second that I made the decision to volunteer.

The people I shared this experience with were young participants in Love’s Bridge projects who earned the trip by making progress in school or other ways, teachers, and volunteers with the organization “Memorial”. As a volunteer, my first task was to set an example of the positive effects that volunteering has on a person’s life and development. My second task was to fill a role I wasn’t used to: teacher and coach. That was something completely new for me, and at first it scared me a bit, but with time it because quite interesting for me. I learned two things: working with children and teenagers is delicate work that requires confident and effective actions; and valuable experiences don’t always happen when you expect them. I only started to feel positive feedback during the second park of my time at the camp, and when I did I was incredibly happy with the emotions and feelings that it gave me. Honestly, before the camp I didn’t expect to experience anything like that. It turns out, I just needed to wait, believe and hold the line.

I think the time at the camp benefited everybody: every one of the kids, volunteers and teachers had an opportunity to think about themselves and the world around them. It’s important now to not rest on what has already been accomplished, not just to use our bridge of love, but to strengthen and reinforce it.
–Oksana Sosnina

Keeping Active

We are pleased to have started a brand new project for the underprivileged young people of Perm. The project “Active Summer”, which has been funded by the local Ministry of Culture and Mass Communications, was inspired by the following conversation that one of our psychologists had with a young person in police custody:

¨Why are you here?¨
¨Stealing¨
¨What did you steal?¨
¨Some skis… with the poles…¨
¨Couldn´t your parents have got some for you?¨
¨They don´t have any money.¨
¨Couldn´t your school lend them?¨
¨They don´t lend them.¨

The aim of the project is to provide youngsters with a wide range of sporting equipment, enabling them to keep fit and busy over the summer period. Items such as footballs, basketballs, volleyballs, frisbee disks, tennis rackets, roller blades and skateboards are available to borrow from our centers. The organization of this project is run entirely by volunteers. The enormous success of the scheme has inspired councils within the Perm region to start the free sport rental for children in two small towns nearby.

There is still plenty more to do this summer – giving underprivileged children and teenagers a chance to get out of town, keep busy, learn new skills, have regular meals and physical exercise. In spending time at Love´s Bridge these kids have the opportunity to feel good about themselves and learn from the positive role models they meet while taking part in our projects. Inspired by the staff and volunteers, they will go on to achieve more and lead a healthier and more productive life in the year to come.

I began my professional life as a Russian teacher in Perm’s schools, but after volunteering for a youth organization providing psychological support I understood that I was more interested in the social sphere, where I have been working for over ten years.

I became a manager of a section of a psychological center for Perm’s youth, I worked for the youth section of the local government, and was the director of Perm’s ‘Youth Information Service’ for two years. I was mainly responsible for social issues which affect Perm’s marginalized children and young people.

I worked as the head of a commercial firm for some time to support my family, but continued to volunteer for youth organizations, and soon returned to working full-time in the social sphere. Last year I worked on projects to help child drug addicts, juvenile delinquents and young people suffering from HIV.

I started working for Love’s Bridge in June 2010 and am now Project Manager here. I was won over by the staff here and, of course, the kids who come to us. I think we’re doing something very important – we help the kids to find themselves. We show them that they can live happily and successfully, looking after their health and the wellbeing of those close to them.

I’m convinced that in our city, in Russia, and in the world there are many people who share our views. We thank everyone who works with us and supports us, and we look forward to making new friends, partners and colleagues.

Last year she took an active part in our ‘Independent Living’ course, and recently she has been attending our volunteering sessions. In fact she has already become a regular volunteer in our new center ‘The Little House on the Hill’, where she helps run craft activities for children from an orphanage.

Natasha says: “They haven’t got any parents, just like me, and I know how hard that is. That’s why I’m here, I want to help them study better, help to sew dolls, make presents and just spend time with them playing games and going for walks.”

Natasha is also studying at a vocational school, goes to drama classes and is a bright spark around the Love’s Bridge centers – we’re very proud of her progress!

In light of increasing economic difficulties (including a reduction in financial support, rising inflation and reduced subsidies) we at Love’s Bridge had to make some important decisions to secure the long-term future of the project. The main decision was to move out of the property on Chkalova Street and start working from new municipal Social Centers.

Rent and utilities costs had gone up from virtually nothing to around 10% of our annual budget, and the property was going to need further renovations if we wanted to continue working there. Instead, we decided to create partnerships with Perm’s Social Centers – a recent initiative that has created rent-free, newly renovated properties to be used by charities and NGOs throughout the city.

We believe that Love’s Bridge can have an even bigger impact by working this way – we can find new partners to work with, whilst continuing to refine a blueprint which can be used in Social Centers throughout the city. We also have more funds available for our core needs, and spend less time working on the upkeep and renovations of the center.

5 Years in Perm – A Retrospective

After dedicating five years of their lives to running Love’s Bridge, Hamish and Hannah-Louise Heald have decided to return home to Britain with their baby daughter Francesca.

“Working for Love’s Bridge has been a totally unforgettable and amazing experience, something that’s difficult to sum up in a few paragraphs. We have worked with some wonderful people who put their whole hearts into helping the children in Perm, and we’d like to thank them for their support.

It hasn’t been easy, and there have been some real moments of frustration when you feel overwhelmed by the problems the kids here face compared to the resources Love’s Bridge has at its disposal. But we have always got through those moments, because we can see, hear and feel the real difference Love’s Bridge makes to the poverty-stricken and unprotected children of Perm.

Just small changes in behavior, a slight crack in the wall they’ve tried to put up to protect themselves, the first smile or ‘thank you’… All of the children and young people we have worked with respond well to our methods, because they are in so much need of what we can give them – love, warmth, attention, guidance, trust and true friendship.
Probably the most inspiring people I have ever met are the Love’s Bridge kids who have managed to turn their lives round, believe in their dreams and make something with their lives. Surrounded by friends and family who try to drag them down to lives of addiction, homelessness, prostitution and crime, they have found the inner strength to believe in themselves, and they instill this in their own children now.”

Hamish Heald
Project Manager 2005-2010
Board Member

We’d like to thank Hamish and Hannah-Louise for their dedication, and welcome Rafael Davletov as the new Love’s Bridge Manager.

Welcoming Rafael!

“I began my professional life as a Russian teacher in Perm’s schools, but after volunteering for a youth organization providing psychological support I understood that I was more interested in the social sphere, where I have been working for over ten years.

I became a manager of a section of a psychological center for Perm’s youth, I worked for the youth section of the local government, and was the director of Perm’s ‘Youth Information Service’ for two years. I was mainly responsible for social issues which affect Perm’s marginalized children and young people.

I worked as the head of a commercial firm for some time to support my family, but continued to volunteer for youth organizations, and soon returned to working full-time in the social sphere. Last year I worked on projects to help child drug addicts, juvenile delinquents and young people suffering from HIV.

I started working for Love’s Bridge in June and am now Project Manager here. I was won over by the staff here and, of course, the kids who come to us. I think we’re doing something very important – we help the kids to find themselves. We show them that they can live happily and successfully, looking after their health and the wellbeing of those close to them.

I’m convinced that in our city, in Russia, and in the world there are many people who share our views. We thank everyone who works with us and supports us, and we look forward to making new friends, partners and colleagues.”

Rafael Davletov
Love’s Bridge Project Manager

A Regular Visitor Returns

Michael Kerins, our storytelling friend from Scotland, visited us again this year, giving an enthusiastic talk at Love’s Bridge about sexual health. The kids soon warmed to his charisma and enjoyed listening to his stories, as well as finding out some potentially life-saving information. This year Michael brought some other guests with him, and the kids were delighted to meet them and find out about life in Scotland. Michael closed the session by telling one of his stories in a theatrical style, and revealing a special surprise – a box of presents and clothes for the Love’s Bridge kids.
By old tradition, besides a generous donation towards the project needs, Michael left one last present for the kids – a small sum of money, which they can choose to spend on something special. The kids love this custom, and it’s great for teaching them how to make important decisions in a group.

Here’s what one of the kids wrote to Michael: “My name is Irina, I’m 15. I was frightened to start with when I first saw you, but I soon understood that you are a very good person. I especially liked how you tell your stories, and you gave us some fantastic presents. I really liked all your stories, but most importantly I want to thank you very much for the presents. It was super!”

We’d like to thank Michael and Dominic Kerins, Frances Logan, Ian Ferguson and Rona Barbour, for their support for the project and positive influence on the kids here in Perm.

The Little House on the Hill

We’ve started working in our first municipal Social Center where we have our own office and access to large sports and activity rooms. The ‘Little House on the Hill’, as the kids have named it (it’s on top of Perm’s main hill) already has plenty going on, including a new educational course just for girls, and providing help for local pensioners.
We asked some of the kids why they wanted to help elderly people:

“I like helping elderly people, because when I’m old someone else will help me too.” Vanya

“It was interesting, I found out about the history of my country, that there was a time when you weren’t allowed to give your opinion, that you could be put in jail for just saying the truth.” Misha

Nadya, the Love’s Bridge psychologist for the center, says things have got off to a great start: “We agreed with the orphanage for a group of 7-11 year olds to come to the center once a week. Our group of teenagers had come early and were there at the same time, so when they saw these little kids they decided to help out too. They sat down in pairs with them whilst they did some craft projects, and afterwards they organized some fun activities for them. They have now decided to come along and help out with them every week!”

The Perfect Christmas Present

We would love to see a Love’s Bridge project in all of Perm’s Social Centers – there are thousands more children who need our help. The only thing holding us back is a lack of funding, something we have felt acutely during these difficult financial times.

The perfect Christmas present for Perm’s most vulnerable children and young people is a contribution to help Love’s Bridge expand and give more of them the chance to transform their lives.

Please follow this link to give the perfect Christmas present this year: www.lovesbridge.org/donate

The Love’s Bridge summer started with two ‘city camps’ for underprivileged kids who were stuck in Perm and had nothing to keep them out of trouble. The first one focused on health and ecological issues, with the kids getting involved in lots of volunteer work which helped them understand how they can change the world they live in. They cleaned up the area around our center, planted flowers for the local community and ran an anti-smoking campaign.

With the second camp we wanted to show the kids other alternatives to life on the streets in Perm. We took part in free sports and cultural activities in the city and were visited by the local Boy Scout organization.

One of the best memories of the camps was when we took the kids to the State Philharmonic. We really had to talk them in to going – they said how it would be really boring, and only old women listen to classical music. Well, they soon changed their minds when they were treated to a private concert by an opera singer, and we got plenty of funny looks on the street outside as the kids took turns to try and emulate her afterwards!

Nature Lovers

This summer Love’s Bridge also ran three holidays for Perm’s most vulnerable children and teenagers, getting them out of the city and doing something positive with their energy.  The first trip was a week-long rafting trip, where the kids got to see some of the beautiful Russian wilderness, while learning many important skills along the way.

A group of older teenagers spent two weeks helping to renovate Perm’s unique Political Repression Museum “Perm-36”, which is based in a former GULAG political prison.  We saw some really big progress in lots of the teens who took part in the camp, as they spent a long, intensive period with a group of our volunteers. The final camp was also a volunteer camp, this time for younger teens, who helped to clear up a riverbank in a nature reserve.

Kids’ Thoughts

Katya (15): Thanks for the wonderful rafting trip I really, really liked it! There were really beautiful hills and rapids, it was all generally brilliant. It was just unreal there – campfires, singing along to the guitar, the ‘banya’, the instructors. I’d like to go on more trips like this.

Dasha (14): A big thank you for organizing such a great rafting trip. It was cool there, and really extreme. We all got  nice sun tans and came back in a great mood. This was the best trip I’ve ever been on.

Denis (15): I’m really happy that I took part in this camp. This camp helped me meet new and really interesting people, some have now become very good friends. Thank you very much for this – I really value what you do, and I want to help you as best I can. I also want to thank you for treating me as an equal. The camp was brilliant.

Scary Stories

Written by Yulia, Love’s Bridge Center Manager

We were staying in a really beautiful spot by the bank of the river, living in tents. In the morning we worked with the kids, and when it was hot in the afternoon we went swimming and played games. In the evening we sat around the campfire and told the kids scary stories about the spirits of the river and forest. We always put some of our adult thinking into the stories, to give them a meaning or moral, like don’t go wandering in the forest at night, you’ll disturb the spirit who’ll make sure you get lost. The kids listened with great interest – being scared and intrigued at the same time.

One evening they went to bed earlier than usual, and we told them that they could carry on talking as long as they weren’t too noisy. The next morning we made our way to breakfast – a 15-minute walk, including climbing up over 500 steps up the hillside! I got chatting with one of the girls, and I asked her how she’d enjoyed her evening. She said that they had been inspired by us, and stayed up late telling scary stories of their own. I immediately thought of silly children’s ghost stories from my own childhood, and wondered what stories kids nowadays told each other.

I asked the girl to share a couple of stories with me, to which she gave me a secretive look and asked me not to repeat the stories to anyone. She then told me that they had been talking about their own lives – how they were beaten, how their parents fought with each other, how some of them are now dead… about how scary real life can be.

A number of you have contacted us, wondering about the lack of recent updates… well, we are a very small organization, and sometimes important events can have a big knock-on effect. Such was the case at Love’s Bridge when project managers Hamish and Hannah-Louise Heald celebrated the birth of their first child, Francesca, in January. All the family are healthy and happy, and are grateful for the many messages of goodwill they have received!

Life at Love’s Bridge has also been very busy, with lots of new kids visiting the centers and attending our courses. You can read all about it right here…

New Year’s Fun
Although a few months have past, lots of our kids keep reminding us about our New Year celebrations. We had a fantastic party followed by a week of games and outings over the holiday period. We asked Boris to share his memories with our supporters:

Hi! My name is Boris and I’m eleven. I want to tell you about how I spent New Year.

This year I had two parties, one at home and one at Love’s Bridge. My brother and I started coming to the center on the 17th or 18th of January 2009. This year has shown me the reason I’m alive. It’s important to be good, if you want other people to be good to you.

The thing I remember best from this year was the ‘Star Bears’ group at Love’s Bridge. I liked drawing about Happiness, What We Would Do If We Were Wizards, and other things. The year went so fast I didn’t notice it. This year was a good one.

We started preparing for the celebrations early. In the Theatre group we did a play. I played the role of Delightful Boy. I liked the play a lot. It was called A Christmas Carol. I especially liked the scene about childhood.

After the play there were lots of interesting performances. For example, the boys did a ‘parkour’ demonstration, then the girls and teachers dressed as gypsies and did a gypsy dance.

After these performances everyone got presents. We were given bags of sweets, and I really liked the calendar made of photos from the Centre too. At home I helped Mum to make different salads and then I ate them myself.

Mum and my Stepdad didn’t give us presents, but we had a lot of sweets from the center. And later presents arrived from Ireland.

With that news, I leave you. Thank you everyone for this New Year!

We’d like to give special thanks to our Irish friends for sending over presents for all the Love’s Bridge kids again this year! It’s a big operation, and the kids appreciate it so much – most of them wouldn’t otherwise get anything much at all.
A New Start

After some months of careful planning and preparation, we have officially started our new line of work at our Consultation Center. Our staff there have started running courses for Perm’s most vulnerable teenagers, adapted from other Love’s Bridge materials, as well as providing more psychological consultations than before. On average ten teenagers visit the center every day, and it can be hard getting them to leave at the end of the day when the center closes! Most of them have very difficult domestic situations, and the center has quickly become a real refuge for them.

We are working very closely with local schools who can’t cope with the problems their most ‘difficult’ pupils present for them. As always, the most important aspect is our individual approach to each child and their problems, making sure they get the attention they deserve.

The first courses are coming to an end, and we have a special weekend away planned for the kids to reward them for their efforts, and to give their new life after the course a great start. We will go out to the countryside for campfires, horse riding and plenty of fun, as well as a graduation ceremony.

These unique opportunities are so important to the development of Perm’s most vulnerable teens, and a $100 donation will cover the costs of one of the participants. Please use our site to donate to this wonderful cause: www.lovesbridge.org/donate

Figure it Out

We would recommend you reading this piece on the BBC website to give you a better idea of some of the problems we are fighting with out here in Russia:
Russia’s HIV Epidemic

To summarize – over half a million Russians drink themselves to death every year, but rampant alcoholism is now being rivaled by HIV/AIDS because of spiraling heroin addiction. In Russia there are over 2.5 million heroin addicts, compared to 800,000 in the US and about 250,000 in the UK.

Unfortunately, heroin abuse is something we have seen more and more of amongst the young people who come to Love’s Bridge, and HIV prevention is now a key part of our work. We are greatly helped with this by a number of groups – some local NGOs such as the Anti-Narcotics Alliance, and annual visits from our friend Michael Kerins, a writer and storyteller from Glasgow, Scotland.

Michael conducts open, honest conversations with the kids about HIV and sexual well-being, and brings a big box of condoms which we can distribute for free amongst Perm’s most vulnerable young people. One would imagine that a country with major heroin and HIV problems would already be running such seminars and schemes, but this is not the case, and Michael’s help is invaluable. He also brings a small donation for a fun activity, and lets the teenagers choose what they want to do with it, encouraging them to take responsibility whilst enjoying themselves.

We’d like to thank Michael and SLATE (the charity which supports his trips) for the fantastic work they do, and look forward to seeing him again later this year!

Sew Stylish!

This year has seen the kids at Love’s Bridge turn their hands to a new sewing project – making Russian-style bookmarks. Some friends of Love’s Bridge wanted to organize presents for their wedding guests, and contacted us to find out if we would be interested in a joint-project. We of course agreed, and everyone is delighted with the results!

Here’s how it works – kids come to the Love’s Bridge centers, and can choose to take part in the sewing club. If they want, they can learn how to make the bookmarks and join in with the project. For each completed bookmark, the kids earn ‘points’ which they can then spend in a few different ways – playing on the computers; obtaining some clothes, stationary or other things for home; renting ice skates from the center.

The kids are not only kept busy learning some valuable sewing skills, they also understand the value of hard work and see the fruits of their endeavors almost instantly. They are also happy with the extra computer time and new things they get, and keep coming back for more sewing!

Love’s Bridge hasn’t just gained a great new project; we have also been given a donation for the finished bookmarks, and look forward to the increased awareness of our work when the guests get their beautiful new bookmarks! Please get in touch if you have any imaginative fundraising ideas!

And Finally…
On behalf of all the kids, staff and volunteers, thank you for your ongoing support!

Our projects would not be running if it wasn’t for your valuable help, letters and donations – so please remember the important role you’re playing in the lives of Perm’s most vulnerable children and young people!

I’m ashamed and embarrassed at what happened. I’m writing to you so that you can understand what you did. I was in the bath, and you came in because you thought I had been rude to you. But I really hadn’t wanted to be rude to you. And you were drunk as usual. You started pushing me under the water, drowning me. Water and air rushed into my mouth and I was gasping for breath. I was really scared. Now I can’t be in bathrooms and in hot places. And when I run fast it becomes difficult to breathe. I know that you don’t even remember this happening. But I want you to know that I’m not angry with you and I have forgiven you. I hope that this doesn’t ever happen again. I hope you love me. I love you.

Anya

This is a letter written by a 13 year old girl who comes to the Love’s Bridge centers. Unfortunately we hear similar accounts on an all too regular basis.

Russia is famous for its long, freezing cold winters, and with good reason! The streets in Perm have long been covered in snow, and kids – many poorly dressed despite temperatures as low as –40 Celcius – come running into the bright Love’s Bridge centers. They are met with piping hot tea and warm greetings, leaving the cold at the door together with the rest of the outside world.

The festive season is a difficult time for many kids in our care, when expectations of a joyful, happy family celebration are cruelly replaced with neglect and abuse. We will give them a holiday season to remember – gifts, games, sledging, ice-skating, snowmen… and most importantly, make them feel loved and cared for.

Thank you for all your support, which allows us to reach out to Perm’s neediest kids. Not a day goes by without us seeing small but significant changes in the kids in our care, and we are proud to see kids that have been through a lifetime of trauma and neglect come out of our centers with the strength and desire to make something of their lives.

Please think about them over the festive season – every contribution goes a long way to improving the lives of some amazing kids.

Standing up to violence

We recently teamed up with a local student group who are raising awareness of child abuse and promoting ways of reducing it. Unfortunately the huge majority of kids we work with experience abuse, both physical and psychological, in their lives. This isn’t just restricted to home life, but also in schools, orphanages and in public places too. We asked children from Love’s Bridge to write about instances when they have suffered from violence and abuse and would like to share one story with you:

Dear Mama,

I’m ashamed and embarrassed at what happened. I’m writing to you so that you can understand what you did. I was in the bath, and you came in because you thought I had been rude to you. But I really hadn’t wanted to be rude to you. And you were drunk as usual. You started pushing me under the water, drowning me. Water and air rushed into my mouth and I was gasping for breath. I was really scared. Now I can’t be in bathrooms and in hot places. And when I run fast it becomes difficult to breathe. I know that you don’t even remember this happening. But I want you to know that I’m not angry with you and I have forgiven you. I hope that this doesn’t ever happen again. I hope you love me. I love you.

Anya

Cheering on the hockey team!

The kids at Love’s Bridge love sports, and were very happy when the Perm hockey team gave us free tickets to their games. They are called Molot-Prikamye (‘The Kama Hammers’, named after the main river in Perm). They are currently top of the local division, and our kids have been doing their best to support them – hopefully we will cheer them into the Premier League!

In Memory of Kostya, Alyosha and Oleg

December 1st is World AIDS day, which is observed in order to raise awareness of the AIDS pandemic, reduce prejudice against those living with HIV and remember those who have died from this condition. Experts consider the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Russia to be ‘out of control’, with the vast majority of cases being amongst teenagers and young people.

At Love’s Bridge this is a problem which is very close to home… Over the past year and a half there have been three HIV related deaths amongst young adults who were cared for in our centers. One of those young people was Oleg Z., whose story we would like to share with you and whose memory we would like to honour.

“Oleg had so much life and energy and a good sense of humor.  I also found that he was one of the more rational kids (when he was sober) and easier for me to reason with. Thank you guys for watching over him until the end.  At least he knows he was loved in this life.”  (Christina Greenberg, former project coordinator)

Oleg started running away from his alcoholic, abusive father when he was 11. He came to our Day Shelter, but was very addicted to sniffing glue; he was cute and outspoken but could be a real rascal too. He moved into the Love’s Bridge shelter when he was 13 and went back to school, but getting him to study regularly and give up sniffing was an uphill struggle. At the age of 17 Oleg ran away from the shelter completely and returned to the streets.. Oleg started injecting drugs and abusing methylated spirits. Over the course of the next three years Oleg would appear regularly at the Day Shelter, where we continued working with young adults once a week. His condition gradually became worse as the effects of living on the streets and abusing alcohol and drugs took their toll.

It was during this time that we found out that HIV was rapidly spreading throughout the young people living on the streets, and it was with some courage that Oleg amongst others went to get tested at the HIV center. The result, as for many, was positive.

Oleg’s last year was spent living on a hot water pipe in a make-shift shelter on the edge of the city. He never lost his sense of humor and energy and even at this stage we would see the potential for him to turn his life around.… but it wasn’t to be. After a long period of living on the pipes Oleg contracted tuberculosis and only agreed to hospitalisation when he was in the final stages of the illness.

Oleg died in hospital on October 20th this year, three weeks short of his 22nd birthday.

“We used to play ping pong. I used to call him “Zakhar” (meaning sugar, because his surname is “Zakharov”) and he used to call me “Markovka” (carrot). He had a very keen sense of humor, and was lots of fun. It’s very sad that his life didn’t become what it could have.” (Jered Markov, former project coordinator)

At Love’s Bridge we believe that prevention is better than cure; we are currently working with children and teenagers who are at high risk of contracting HIV. These are the kids that need to be educated now to prevent the epidemic from spreading further. We also work with older HIV positive teenagers, help them access treatment and psychological help in dealing with this condition.

Every donation made to Love’s Bridge helps vulnerable young people lead long, healthy productive lives – a gift that truly goes a long way after the festive season…

Facebook and final thoughts…

Some people have been in touch, asking how they can support us through Facebook. For those of you who are members and want to show your support whilst raising awareness for Love’s Bridge, you can do so by following these links:

Facebook Page
Love’s Bridge on Facebook Causes

Thank you for your support over the last year! On behalf off all the kids, staff and volunteers at Love’s Bridge we wish you a joyful and happy festive season and best wishes for 2010!