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For 30 years, God has blessed us in our shared, fruitful ministry at Mission Stephanus. With God's help, over 300 churches, as well as many social projects, have been established over the years according to need and available resources. In the early 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Moldova seemed poised to become an independent state, and energy prices immediately skyrocketed. Electricity was only available for a few hours a day, the currency was changed, and people lost all their savings.
Extortion and banditry raged in the country; businesses and factories closed. People struggled for survival, and many children were left on the streets, begging. The community did not remain idle. We began inviting such children into our church. We fed and clothed them and told them about God.
In the evening, we thought they went home. We discovered that wasn't the case. They sought refuge in high-rise buildings, in whose basements heating pipes ran, and they slept on these pipes. In the mornings they begged, at three in the afternoon they came to us for lunch and lessons, and at night they went back to the basements. The children came from broken homes; some of them were orphans.
Once, God touched the hearts of our guests from America and Europe, and we were able to purchase a former pioneer camp in the suburbs of Chisinau. There, a family-like children's home called "Bethany" was opened. In addition, we gradually rebuilt ten old houses. Families who had received a calling from God to minister to children were housed in these homes. This wonderful opportunity was primarily given to married couples who did not have children of their own. On average, ten to twelve children lived in each family.
People live like a family in our facilities.
Over the years, Bethany has housed more than 300 children. Many have since started their own families, some have graduated from higher education institutions and now work as teachers at the Christian school. It was easy to integrate orphans and young children into families. Teenagers were more difficult. At that time, God blessed us with a new building for the Brotherhood Center, and we gave up the old center for youth ministry.
This children's home works closely with the Department for Social Protection and Children's Rights. They contacted us with a request to take in homeless children. There are day centers in the city that provide children with food and education, but they have a problem with overnight stays, so our children's home, with a capacity of 35 beds, is always full.
The services offered by our home include: shower facilities, free clothing and shoes, medical care, Christian education, document replacement, and assistance with enrolling children in schools or vocational schools. We also help children find their way back to their families. Over time, our work with street children in the surrounding communities has expanded.
In many young families, the parents went abroad for work—the mother to Italy, the father to Russia. They left their children with the grandparents, who were unable to care for them properly. Many families broke down, and the children found themselves back on the streets. We gathered them for day programs in the communities. We call them charity canteens.
Help and necessary care will be provided.
We currently have twelve such meal centers serving approximately 600 children, where they receive a hot lunch after school. We help them with their homework and guide them towards a disciplined life. The children attend Sunday school and are integrated into the life of the community.
When we began caring for these children in their homes, we became aware of the elderly people living there. Eventually, we visited elderly people living alone and witnessed appalling conditions! Some people were living in abandoned houses without heating. At first, sisters from the parish visited those in need and brought them food. However, some of these people became bedridden, making it increasingly difficult to provide assistance and care under such conditions.
To mark the occasion, we opened a nursing home. The need grew, and so we expanded the activities of this project. Currently, 60 people live permanently in the nursing home. It has now been in operation for just over ten years. Approximately 300 people have died during this time. For some, no one thought they would survive. Some of them are still alive, praising and thanking God for comfort, warmth, and care.
Appropriate aids
In 2014, a home for children with disabilities was opened. In Moldova, children with disabilities live in orphanages or boarding schools until they reach the age of 18. After that, they return to their parents. If they have no parents, or if their parents no longer want them, they are placed in a closed psychiatric hospital. There, mentally healthy children are deprived of their sense of reason and spend their entire lives there.
One day, we received a call from one of these boarding schools near the nursing home, asking us to take in two 18-year-old children so they wouldn't be placed in a psychiatric hospital. The children were taken in and lived with the elderly residents in a nursing home for a year until God gave them a home. The formerly abandoned kindergarten was repaired and renovated, and 14 more children from other places were housed there.
They have all welcomed God into their hearts, actively participate in church services, and glorify and thank God. Currently, the construction of a new building for these children is nearing completion, as the need is great and there are not enough spaces available.
We have three centers for drug addicts and alcoholics, where 84 people are currently undergoing rehabilitation. At the moment, one of the rehabilitation centers in the city of Chisinau is undergoing extensive renovations, and Mission Stephanus is not only contributing financially but also sending volunteers from Germany to provide both physical and mental support.
Self-sufficiency - Occupational therapy
In May 2021, we had the privilege of welcoming the Stephanus Mission, led by Brother Nikolaus Wall. The brothers were able to visit many of their projects in a short time. Among them, we noticed several that will remain in our memories. It was a great blessing for us to be able to visit the construction sites for churches in Meresheny and Karakuy together.
Over the past five years, we have undertaken a large-scale construction project to build new communities. Since 2018, the Brotherhood of Moldova has opened 120 new communities. We were also able to visit the construction site of the center for supporting socially disadvantaged communities in Balti. To ensure more effective work, it was decided to distribute social work efforts across the regions of Moldova. We are very grateful that the mission is actively helping here as well. This assistance in the region comes in the form of in-kind donations and financial support.
During a visit to the parish in Leova, the brothers witnessed how the old building, thanks to the mission's support, was being transformed into a spiritual center for working with the city's underprivileged children. It was also wonderful to see the results of our joint efforts at the children's center in the village of Voznezeny. Previously, organized groups of volunteers from Germany actively participated in its construction. Currently, 16 orphans find shelter, parental warmth, and care there.
During our visit to the Christian center "Sarepta," we had the opportunity to witness firsthand the work of the nursing home, which cares for 60 elderly people. This center also works with children with disabilities. We also toured the nearly completed construction of a new building for children with disabilities, which will be able to accommodate up to 50 people. It was a joy to see the brothers admiring the building materials and other household items that had been sent as humanitarian aid.
The center works daily with 120 children from low-income families who come after school and receive a hot lunch and lessons. The "Sarepta" center also has a bakery that provides hundreds of socially disadvantaged people in the village of Sarata-Galbene and the surrounding villages with free bread every day.
Every day, the bakery bakes 1,000 loaves of bread to meet the needs of projects and impoverished people in the village of Sarata-Galbene and the surrounding villages. Mission Stephanus provides tremendous support to the bakery by supplying flour. It was very gratifying to draw the attention of the brothers who visited us to the emerging needs and the wonderful results that the Lord is bestowing upon us thanks to the support of the mission and the work of God's consecrated people.
We are deeply grateful to the Lord, as well as to the sacrifices and support of Mission Stephanus, which has been available to the Union of Pentecostal Churches of Moldova for 30 years! We hope, with God's help, to further increase the ministry we perform together for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ!
A thank-you letter from Sarepta in Moldova, translated from Russian.
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