When hope comes to an orphange.

The world looked on when the Berlin wall came down and the closed world of communism began to open its doors to the west.  In the west even our poorest is still rich in comparison to many who once lived behind the iron curtain.

Stories so tragic and horrible we would like to shrink away.  Places where toilets were nothing more than holes in the ground and toilet paper did not exist.  Washing hardly exists and the smell almost unbelievable.

We are used to heating in our rooms but what about rooms that have no heating and the temperatures fall lower than even our worst winter and children die from the cold on a regular basis.  How can we imagine a place where Children have no idea what toys should be used for?

It can be hard to imagine a state where resources are so limited that orphanages are nothing more than run down filthy disease ridden hovels.  Worst is still to come when they turn sixteen they are given a bus ticket and shown the door.  Suddenly without any proper education and backup they have to make their own way in the world.  Sadly human trafficking becomes the nightmare of many.

This is an article from a minister called Philip Cameron.  Originally from Peterhead Scotland but now ministers in America and in a small former Russian state called Moldavia.  His passion and hearts desire is to save as many as he can.  This is his testimony

Please pray that God will intervene and help.  Make this story known.

Stella was one of the first girls Philip met when he went to the orphange at Hincesti, Moldova. Hincesti was the first orphanage Philip visited, and the place our ministry to help Moldova’s children began. Although much has been done to transform the orphanage there, it was a truly horrific place in the beginning. As Philip worked to ensure that we stopped children freezing to death or dying from malnutrition, he got to know many of the children personally.

One young girl was named Stella. She was a natural leader, and became an unofficial guide to Philip when he visited the orphanage. She would tell Philip about special needs that some of the other kids had, and generally did her best to look out for the other kids. Stella’s hobby was sewing, and she had made two beautiful tapestries from meager supplies of material and thread that she had somehow managed to obtain. On one of Philip’s first visits, she gave him one of the tapestries. A poverty-stricken orphan, she gave away half of her most treasured possessions.

Needless to say, Philip was greatly moved by her gift, and from that time on, he made sure she never ran out of thread or material.

Then, at age sixteen, tragedy struck. Stella was put out of the orphanage. In the place she was sent to be “cared for,” she was treated brutally and she ran away. When Philip returned to the orphanage and heard what had happened, he searched desperately, but he never found her.

One of our workers was tasked to find her, but all he found were tragic stories from people who had seen her… SHE WAS SELLING HER BODY TO LIVE. That was bad enough, but even worse was to come when the orphanage doctor delivered awful news to Philip…

“She’s dead… AIDS!” This tragic young girl was used by vile men until they killed her.

EVERY YEAR IN JUNE, MORE “STELLAS” ARE FORCED OUT OF ORPHANAGES ALL OVER MOLDOVA.

Although there are some state programs that are supposed to care for these kids, Moldova’s resources are extremely limited. At this stage, untold thousands of them simply fall through the cracks and are never seen or heard from again.

These children are sent away from the orphanages with a few dollars and a bus ticket to whatever town appears on their birth certificate. That’s when the sex-traffickers make their move, and pounce on the girls. Corrupt orphanage officials have even tipped off the traffickers as to the availability of “suitable girls.” These vile men show up at the bus station with fancy cars and lure girls away with promises of good jobs, plenty of money and nice apartments. But once the girl enters the car, she is enslaved, tortured, raped and beaten until she complies with the wishes of her new masters. Finally she will arrive in some far off country, where she is placed into the hands of eager customers as often as thirty times a day.

Moldova has been described as “the engine of the sex industry.” Human trafficking is rampant. When Philip realized that girls like Stella, whom we had worked so hard to protect in the orphanages at Cupcui and Hincesti, were being abandoned to lives of horror at the hands of the sex traffickers, he knew that an answer had to be found immediately.

THAT ANSWER IS CALLED STELLA’S HOUSE!

Located in Moldova’s capital city, Chisinau, young girls from the orphanages are able to get an education, have a safe place to stay, and live in a family-like environment where Godly people will care for them, teach them about Jesus and keep them safe.

Stella’s House 1 (shown at right) has been in operation since 2006. Stella’s House 2 was officially opened in April 2009 by the United States Ambassador to Moldova, Asif J. Chaudhry. Both homes were purchased, finished, then beautifully decorated and furnished by the faithful provision of God and the generous compassion of His people!

STELLA’S HOUSE No.1 AND No. 2 ARE ALREADY SAVING LIVES RIGHT NOW!

But this is just the beginning. Moldovan officials are already asking us, “What about the others?” With God’s help — AND YOURS — we are working night and day to take care of as many of these young girls as possible. As of December 2009, Stella’s House 3 is near completion, and we have already secured the site for Stella’s House 4. Stella’s 2, 3 and 4 are all adjacent properties, so when complete, all three homes will become a single, secure campus. As long as vulnerable young girls are being thrust out of orphanages on to the streets of Moldova, Stella’s House be there, offering them a home, hope and a future!

We need your help and support to care for these girls month after month. And we need your prayers. Pray with us that there will be no more tragedies on the streets of Moldova… Pray with us that there will be no more “Stellas.

http://www.philip-cameron.org/index.php/missions/stellas_house