More than we could hope for..

When we landed into Chisinau airport in the early hours of the 17th February 2021, we had no idea what laid in store, other than a desire to 'make a difference' in the lives of orphans and victims of child trafficking. All I remember was, how cold it is in Moldova and how we'd left family, friends and everything we know to start a new life in what is Europe's poorest country.

After some sleep, we were driven to a remote village, some 90 minutes outside the capital, called Pohrebeni and to our new home, specially built to accommodate and give refuge to as many as 10 desperate children.

And so our new life began, starting with a race against the clock in order to secure our residency, a process required before we could welcome any children into our home. We'd soon learn that the only source of heat in this huge house, was an industrial boiler that required me to chop wood, in sub-zero conditions, something I hadn't done since my child-hood growing up in the seaside town of Teignmouth, Devon.

Whilst we waited for the immigration process to take it's course, we got busy involving ourselves in the local community, helping out at the local church and developing strategies to reach out to the other 50 or more houses like ours across Moldova. This very quickly resulted in an invitation to join the leadership team responsible for these houses, thus directly supporting all 50 homes, leading the charge in raising vital funds to pay for food, heating and medication.

Whilst visiting friends in Chisinau, we were introduced to Natalia Postolachi, Director of the Centrul de Plassement Temporar pentru Copii, a 25 strong orphanage in a beautiful resort called Vadul Lui Voda, 20 minutes outside of Chisinau. This would prove a pivotal point in our short time in Moldova, and would be where we would spend most of our weekends, encouraging and supporting the children.

The needs of the centre soon became apparent as at the end of 2021 they will lose the last of their sponsors, placing huge pressure on the small management team and providing for an uncertain future for the 25 children who call the centre home. In response, we have offered to help bridge the gap and use our relationships and contacts in order to raise awareness and support for the incredible work they do.

We have developed strong relationships with the children at the centre and as well as providing essential items such as a washing machine and food, with the support of LinkedIn friends, we have also provided them with bikes and a trampoline which has proved hugely beneficial to not only the children, but the staff as well.

In addition, we have been able to help a family whose children used to be at the centre and who were only separated because the family were poor. This has become a key area where we believe we can help. There is no where else in Europe where a child would be placed into care for, in this case, 2 years, simply because the Mom was poor. Moving forward, we will be creating strategies to keep families together, where poverty is the issue.

Moldova is a beautiful country which suffers some of the worst economic migration in Europe, simply because there isn't sufficient money. It's estimated that 80% of the countries residents are officially living in poverty, with far too many parents leaving children behind to seek employment in more affluent countries. This fuels the devastating reality that is Moldova's orphan crisis, with children being left with grandparents that can't cope.

We have clear strategies to help teach this incredible nation to fish and create a vibrant export programme intended to bring more wealth into the country and increase the average monthly salary from it's unsustainable and impractical ￡100 per month.

One of the best things about our time here, has been inviting children back to our house and enable them, if not for the briefest of moments, to forget their circumstances and live like normal children. This saw one precious girl called Xenia speak to me in Romania and tell me 'Te iubesc Tata', translated 'I love you Daddy'.

We've gotten used to crying here as things quite often move us to tears, but seldom are those tears because a child has finally got hope, as trust in adults is gently and carefully restored.

And so, if this is what we can achieve, in a strange and new country, with very few friends, very little resources, directly supporting more than 350 orphans, 50 children's homes and one orphanage in just 3 months, what will we achieve in the next 90 days?

What we need now though is partners; people and businesses who want to join the fight and make a real difference to the lives of precious children who are simply hungry to be loved. As such, we have launched a new initiative we call The 250 (two-fifty) Club, an exclusive group of incredible people and businesses who are willing to donate regularly to enable us to achieve our dream and the dreams of thousands of boys and girls across Moldova.

What sets us apart from many charities, is every single penny we raise, is spent on the purpose for which it was donated and not on us, salaries or administration. Please visit our web site www.reachmystreet.com/250-club to see how you and your organisation can get involved. Or email me personally on [email protected]