SOCIAL MINISTRY OF ST ELISABETH CONVENT IN THE COMMUNITY
THE LAND OF CHILDHOOD PROJECT
The
land of childhood... Is there anything more bright and pure than a smile of a
child?.. Unfortunately, there are young martyrs - the disabled children - who
are in desperate need of love and motherly care, like no one else in the world.
The
Sisterhood in honour of the Holy Martyr Grand Princess Elisabeth and St.Elisabeth Convent have cared for children who stay in health and social
facilities for many years, namely:
·
Special
boarding school No. 7 (for mentally challenged children)
·
Centre
of social rehabilitation of children
·
Child
unit of the National Psychiatric Clinic
Apart from care and spiritual
help, the Convent carries out a number of projects aimed at the improvement of
the living conditions for the children and at their social and medical
rehabilitation. These projects include supply of medicines and hygiene kits,
establishment of creative workshops, rehabilitation programmes, recreation,
hitch-hiking trips, attending theatres and concerts.
The
boarding home for mentally challenged children is located not far from the
Convent. The children have various diagnoses - Down’s syndrome, cerebral palsy,
birth traumas, congenital physical disabilities and accompanying splanchnopathies.
There are about two hundred children who stay in this boarding home. Many of
them were abandoned by their parents.
The
children are sincere and open, they can wholeheartedly hug a person they see
for the first time and are willing to share their love with everyone. They
easily discern the other person’s mood and begin to comfort him if he is sad
and depressed. There is a number of bedridden children in the boarding home for
whom the time has stopped. Sad though it is to see their suffering, one can still
feel that their souls will be with God forever where there is no pain, no
sorrow and no tears.
The Convent and
the Sisterhood are non-profit organizations, which do not receive financial
support from the government and have to rely solely on donations. Thanks to the
support coming from religious and charity organizations, as well as individual
sponsors and European states, a number of projects have been implemented:
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“Joy Theatre”
Thirty mentally challenged
orphans from the boarding home have been engaged in the activity of the
children’s theatre “Ladoshki” organized by the brothers and sisters of the
Convent for twelve years. More than fifteen plays have been staged during that
period. Professional actors from Minsk theatres hold regular classes of
creative movement, drama and dance for
the children.
The children are happy to perform
not only in Belarus but also abroad.
The young actors demonstrate
obvious progress and improvement of their mental and emotional state. Classes
of drama contribute to the development of their creativity, imagination,
sensory movements, and inspire them to study further.
Furthermore, the orphans learn
the skills and habits necessary for their future life in the society. Their
participation in the performances grows their confidence and helps them to live
their dreams and bring joy to those who see them.
Summer camp “Nezabudka”
A summer camp for children from
socially vulnerable backgrounds has been organized annually at the metochion of
the convent in a picturesque place for the last decade. Around twenty young
patients of the boarding home for mentally and physically challenged children
come to the summer camp every year. Fairs and special days are held,
performances are staged and hikes are organized here. Children can learn to
play the guitar, to sing, to make handicrafts and even to tie prayer ropes.
A panel home was
purchased in 2011 thanks to sponsorship of the European Women Association so
that children who suffer from more serious disorders could stay in the camp.
Thus, the orphans
get the opportunity to spend time together with other children of their age, to
participate in sports and artistic events adapted according to their abilities.
This project helps to adapt and integrate mentally and physically challenged
orphans into the society.
Craft Workshops
Two workshops
have opened their doors within the premises of the boarding home so that the
mentally challenged children could develop their creativity. A wood-processing
workshop is aimed at the boys, while the girls have the chance to learn how to
make ceramics. St Elisabeth Convent bought and mounted the equipment and
furniture for these workshops. These workshops contribute to the development of
labour skills of the children who stay in the boarding school and help to find
a solution for the problem of their labour rehabilitation. When their treatment
in the boarding home is over, the graduates will be able to use the skills they
have learned for employment. On the other hand, the opportunity to make a
product and to see the results of their work allows the patients of the
boarding home to feel that they are useful and valuable for the society. The
products that the children make are sold by the sisters during fairs organized
by the Convent and the money they generate buys the children gifts and sweets.
Therapeutic horseback riding
The Convent tries
to employ innovative approaches to medical rehabilitation of the challenged
children. The sisters of the Convent and the Sisterhood took a study course on
therapeutic horseback riding and bought a specially trained horse to hold such
classes with the children. The first groups of challenged children had the
chance to try this method at the metochion in the summer of 2011.
The children who
do therapeutic horseback riding show improvement of their psycho-emotional
state, positive dynamics in the development of their eye and movement
coordination as well as the therapeutic effect of general invigoration.
Christian School in
honor of St Euphrosyne of Polotsk
This
school hosts daily classes not only on Catechism but also on icon painting,
choir singing, classical dance, Cossack martial arts. It is also planned to
include a planetarium and a theatre hall for the performances of the “Ladoshki”
children’s theatre.
An indoor arena
for therapeutic horseback riding is to be built in order to have classes all
year round and in all weather conditions.
We plan to build
an outdoor sports ground for the parishioners’ children and the challenged
children from the adjacent social centres.
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