journey report Aart & Lia Lenselink | give them room | shoe action | the next journey

Romania journey report of Aart and Lia Lenselink, October 30 – November 7
We’re only trying to give you an idea of our experience during our journey.This story is our experience and every other person will have his own feelings about these journeys. One thing was clear for us: you have been there to know what is it all about.

We’ve been with eight persons to Romania. “We” are: Wouko and Janneke Snijder, Jens and Sjanie van den Akker, the parents of Sjanie and we (Aard and Lia Lenselink). Across Germany, Austria, Hungary to the border of Romania. Before we came to the border of Romania, Wouko told us the protocol how to pass the border smoothly. After the border you see that you coming in a totally other world. During the journey it will only be more different. Bad roads and also the whole infrastructure. Sjanie parents asked to go first to the place called Anina. Here lives a family where the mother leaves here man and children alone and they are living in a bad situation. A bad room so terrible I never saw it before, with a woodstove, sanitaria that will fall in peaces when you touch it......, this all in a dark part of the town with old industry in the back yard. After this we leave to Brasov. A city with a above average air pollution, cars, bus who produce smoke curtains, old flats in ghetto’s, where families lives in basements without daylight from outside. In our eyes the people live there in such a bad situation that we would see no more future in this kind off living (no work, less incoming money and the families are so big, bad living situation, etc.) Maybe it all sounds sombre but it is the reality. The good thing of this journey is that we see what Wouko and his members of the foundation are doing here in Romania. In my eyes they work with healthy principles:

• The golden rule of first aid; help people at the place where they are. Romania: give help at the place where it is needed, buy materials, food and all kinds of that what they need at that place, it is good for the economy there, better costefficency because no cost of transportation, the Romanian people be more concerned.

• Don’t get too emotional with assistance, set the things in a good order, so that you don’t have any regards afterwards (thank you Wouko for the tip).

• Put people in the country on, who are reliable and when you are back in Holland they can do it for you. Gabi the man, who do all the financial part in Brasov, do his works very good. In the mean time you can give help directly when it is needed.

• Teach the people who received help to take properly care with the things they rece ved. Also this is good arranged. People have to sign for receiving and they have the responsibility to ta e care for the things they received as a good family father.

But there is more than all these material things, there is a spiritual need and I have seen that Wouko and his wife Janneke have good communication with young people to support them spiritual for a good future. Still you have a bad image of your father there is a father in Heaven who will never disappoint you. Be in the future a good father in your own family, work on you relation with your girlfriend and built a good future for you self.

I discovered, Wouko and Janneke, they both have a big hart for the youth (they say they have the future). For me one thing is very clear, Wouko is a real ambassador of the foundation. He looks a situation very clear and is able to cut the knot, Wouko don’t walk away to bring bad news when the people there don’t have their responsibility. For this all you need to have a good team on the background, lucky there are. Strictly speaking, this is a big mission project what (and I speak for my own, in my eyes it) is underestimate. Naturally we also had a lot off fun and blessings together. I would like to go again another time and when I have the time I’m stand open for this. Now I understand the name of the foundation “Friends for Romania”.

Aart and Lia Lenselink

Give them room
On this moment we as members are busy to start a project for the Paduret family named “Give them room”. It is the intension to buy a bigger apartment for the much too little housed family.
In January 2004, the EO-Metterdaad financed projects of foundation that are helping people in Romania. In the EO magazine “Visie” you can read about this action. We immediately respond to this project. Now we hope with our project and the support of the EO-Metterdaad to make it al happen. We like to sell the old apartment of the Paduret family and with the support of donators and the EO-Metterdaad, we trying to get enough money to by a bigger apartment for this family.

Action plan: ‘Give them room’ for € 50,-
The Paduret family is one of the families who we support of the beginning. At this moment there are so many problems in this family, we think now we must do something. The Paduret family consist of father Ionel and mother Victoria with 10 children. Namely Sorin Alin 20 year, Alex and Alina 18 year, Anamaria 17 year, Samuel 14 year, Iosie 12 year, Benjamin 11 year, Bianca 9 year, Ligia 8 year en Paol 4 year.Properly the family had 11 children, the youngest son died in the spring this year, he was only 1,5 years old.Since 1990, the family lives in a 2 rooms apartment, 1 room what is 3x4 meters an the other room is 3x3 meters. Both rooms are manage so that they can sleep there. Two of the children are sleeping on the kitchen floor. There is no room to life here. In 1989 the father had an accident, he was busy to change a wheel of his car and a passing car hit him.

Sorin, his son, saw what was happening at that moment. He told us since that moment his father got a brain damage and need every day medicine. Still the father has terrible headache. The oldest children are good in studying and they like to study ut there is no room. The tension in the house is very high.
Every month the father gets a pension of
€ 40,- and they get € 54,- for the children. Our foundation pays for the study of Sorin. They pay monthly € 89,- for energy- and service cost. There is only
€ 5,- to live every month. Thank goodness there are brothers and sisters from the church and our foundation who support this family.
We, the foundation “Friends for Romania” like to buy a bigger apartment for this family and try to put their lives on the right track. We have our contacts in Romania so this family get good accompany.
Money is every time the biggest problem that is why we ask you in time of all the holidays at the end of the year, to think about how brothers and sisters live 2000 km from here, it is only 3 hours flying.
Concrete we ask you to pay for one time € 50,- so we can give this family the room they need. The children can and like to study. When nothing is happening the children must work without an education to earn money for the rest of the family. We like to give the children a future and be useful and that’s why they need a good education. That’s why they need a bigger apartment.
One more time: give them room.
We like to see your contribution on bank account number 37.90.52.342 mentioning; give them room.
We will thank you and on behalf of the foundation “Friends for Romania” we wish you Gods blessing. The shoe action.

Shoe action
The shoe action was during the last trip in November.
In that time there were about 250 shoe been distribute to the children of the families who are we sponsored every month. Together with the help of the church in Brasov and the people who came with us this trip, it all turn out good. At this moment there are still shoes distribute and at the end of the action we like to know how much children we made glad with the shoes.

The next journey
Wouko and his wife Janneke will go after Christmas for a week to Romania.They will look if all the shoes are distributed and will visit the Paduret family and try to visit so much families as they can. There will be made new photos of the new families and they will check the information of the families if they are still matching with there situation know. They will also look for a new apartment for the Paduret family. This all will be done together with our contact persons and the church in Brasov.

From the left to the right; Gabi, Wouko en Dimitru