Спілка жінок Херсонщини

There are 802 orphaned children who have never felt parental warmth, as they have an orphan’s heavy fate. More than 2,000 are social orphans, who having the own parents, haven’t had the happiness to grow up in a family. For the sake of all of them, on Prayer’s Day for the Orphans, Kherson community united in the prayer.

On 11 November 2019 the representatives of the local authorities, the clergy, civic organizations and adoptive parents gathered together traditionally in the walls of Kherson Art Museum named after O. Shovkunenko.

This year except for the uniting sincere prayer for the orphans, the members of the praying morning had a panel discussion as for the mechanisms of bringing children back to a family.

“There should be adults standing next to a child, to love him/her, support and take care of him/her. All of them are our children and we are obliged to do our best for them to be happy”, stated the secretary of Kherson Municipal Council Olena Ursulenko.

The representative of the authority was supported by the clergy as well, who emphasized the necessity of the rebirth of family preservation values, respect towards family member, care and separation of duties. For example, there was no necessity in the orphanages in Halychyna in 1939, as all the children who had stayed orphans, were brought up by the close relatives or God-parents.

All together the participants have discussed the necessity of the formation of the coaching institution, the perspective of a bonus system and social security of an adoptive family.

In the current climate, adoptive and foster families experience hard times because of the bureaucratic constituent of the system. As the adoptive parents emphasized during the discussion, they stay on a one-on-one basis at all stages of bringing a child back to a family with a whole burden of certificates and permissions. And every step is not free of charge.

Though, first and foremost, a child needs faith that she/he is needed. “It is highly important to understand that someone needs you and that you are loved. To put your trust in someone and accept this”, stated one of the orphans in her speech.

The event was finished with the traditional prayer for the orphans, which was shared by all the believers. And also the participants of the meeting have chosen the objective for all of them: to do their best in order to put not just orphans’ pictures next to the chairs, but pictures of these children together with their families.

For reference: Kherson Women Union was the first to raise the necessity to coach children, who leave the residential boarding institutions and go to and adult life. It was in 2017, a year before the start of the deinstitutionalization reform in the state, i.e. a process of bringing children back to the family forms of upbringing. For three years of the organization’s functioning, more than 130 oblast children were managed to be embraced by services of social adaptation and career guidance. That is every 22nd child that really needs it. Now in the framework of social partnership, the organization plans to continue the re-structured project of the Corporate Coaching that will help children, deprived parental warmth, to get ready for leaving the walls of the institutional establishment.