Reaching out to children in Russia

Published: 01.03.07

Omega’s current community project sees us working with Save the Children to improve the lives of underprivileged children in Russia. Our project partners at Save the Children offer us an insight into the life of just one family whose situation will be improved as their emergency refuge is expanded thanks to the generosity of the Omega team and other project partners.

Nastja’s story

About three months ago, Nastja took her little brother and ran away to an emergency refuge centre in Nikel, close to the border of Norway.

“I hope that Pasja will have a childhood. I haven’t had a childhood, but I hope that Pasja will”, says the teenager.

Nastja is only 14 years old, but has already been responsible for three-year old Pasja for much of her life. She tells of an upbringing where they lived in poverty with their mother, a heavy drinker who was violent towards them. Nastja doesn’t know her father.

“My mum stopped beating me when I was 13 and I started to resist her. After that, I couldn’t live at home anymore and had to move. I moved around several places until I finally got a room in a block of bed-sitters for disadvantaged children in Nikel. Here I am safe and well.”

At the moment, Natsja shares a room with two other girls and goes to school. She dreams of gaining an education, and uses the evenings to draw and sew.

However, she had always worried about her little brother and what her mother could do to him when she was drunk. Three months ago, she took on a heavy burden; She picked Pasja up from their home and brought him to an emergency refuge for disadvantaged children in Nikel.

Pasja feels comfortable in the emergency refuge, and is gaining weight. Because of his mother’s alcohol abuse, he has minor brain damage, but the personnel at the refuge believe that he will develop normally, given the proper care. He plays with other children, toddles, has fun and laughs. He gets food and warm clothes. In the evenings, Aunt Olga reads he and his room mates bedtime stories, and at night he falls asleep in the refuge’s bedroom for toddlers; In this bedroom there are 17 beds close together.

Expanding the refuge

At the refuge, there is currently room for 70 children from vulnerable and marginalised families. The need is much greater. Some of the children are mentally or physically disabled, but the majority have been exposed to neglect from their respective families. The refuge centre covers the whole Petsjenga district, with Nikel as its centre. With both assistance and financial funds from Save the Children, the refuge centre is finally expanding. A mobile unit will soon be traveling around the district to locate children living in difficult situations. There will also be an emergency unit built as a refuge for teenagers.

“Alcohol abuse, unemployment and poverty are the most important key words”, explains Evgenya Korneeva from the refuge.

“More and more families experience problems so vast that they are unable to take care of their children, and unfortunately this is a problem that only increases. Several of the military bases here have been closed down, and people have lost their ‘bread and butter’. Too many children suffer because of this.”

“Most of the parents appreciate that we intervene and provide their children with better lives. We always try to engage in good co-operation with the parents, so that the children might eventually be able to move back home. Our goal is that these childrens’ lives will be improved in several ways because of the help provided.”

“I still haven’t given up the dream of us having a good life together as a family”, Nastja says quietly.

“We belong together. Pasja and I even have the same birthday! But first of all – our mum has to stop drinking and beating us.”