Hope at Last

This is a wonderful story write by Irene Byers from Calvary Chapel St. Peteburgh. You might want to view the PDF to see their faces. PDF article Hope you enjoy it.

In our 2007 visit to Romania’s Sabolciu village at Oradea, our hearts were ripped
apart with Alexandra’s empty, sad expression. Dirt covered her face. She had no
response to Sarah Christopher’s gentle swabbing. Months later we learned Alex and
her sister Alina (ages 2 and 6) were living alone in a 5x7 foot unheated hut with no
adults. Sabolciu is the poorest of two Roma (gypsy) villages we visited. Neither
have running water or heat in their homes today yet.

Fearing these girls would die in the harsh winter, Pathway to Joy Ministries entreated the government to let them place the girls in foster care. This battle went on seven months. Finally, Pathway risked losing their license when they physically took the girls, with their grandma’s permission, and placed them in a foster home, a loving rescue done just in time. Alex and Alina were both sick, suffering from frostbite, and shaking with fear. Embedded lice meant the complete shaving of their heads was necessary.

Pathway then discovered that Alina had never been issued a birth certificate. The date believed to be nearest her day of birth is January 30. She will celebrate for the first time in 2009 with the caring Christian family God has provided. Alex and Alina now have two sisters, a mommy and a daddy.

When Jim and I understood their demise and the sponsorship needed for a foster home, we knew we were to give. Our life group, led by Jeff and Shelly Kellogg, now adds enough to cover a larger percentage of their monthly foster care expense.

In October this year, we (and Angie Banks) were privileged to spend a Sunday afternoon with Alina and Alexandra in their foster home. What a miracle of God we witnessed before us – two joyful sisters laughing, having fun, and enjoying their “mommy,” Simona.

“Seeing the girls now,” stated Angie, “ and knowing the gravity of their situation, the transformation in their lives can only be explained by the Lord intervening through Pathway to Joy. The sounds of their sweet laughter brought tears to my eyes. I loved seeing the hugs and love they had for Simona and the love she had for them. This experience alone would convict me to support Pathway to Joy, when you see the fruit of their labor in front of you.”

When Chicagoan Bud Nidey in our group observed Alina and Alex a couple days later, he was taken in with their exuberance. “I recall at one point the youngest was laughing so hard she was even covering her mouth. These children bore no resemblance to the sad children I had heard about.”

Alina and Alexandra – two sisters miraculously rescued from an all-alone life with death crouching at the door. Just one case in which the Holy Spirit prompted Pathway to Joy to bring hope that lasts. It’s their mission – to offer protection, provision, and permanent solutions for the many abandoned and orphaned children in Romania. “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans...in their distress.” James 1:27a NIV.