Romania

Fall Newsletter

 in Music / Romania by

Below is the text of the Fall Newsletter.  This is the first of our weekly updates.  Being new at this, we hope you will be patient as we learn to use the system and enhancements.   Each week we will tell you about something going on at the mission or if appropriate, we will tell you about changes going on in Romania.  Please feel free to share this post with friends and family.  Mia’s Children can be contacted by email at Info@miaschildren.org or by calling Joan Castle, President at 901-481-5441.

The World of Music Wins!

Nica, who just graduated from high school, did very well in her testing and has been accepted into the National University of Music in Bucharest.  She began her classes on October 2nd.

Years ago, Nica (which is short for Nicoleta) was allowed to visit Mia’s Children for the summer with her brother Jon.  She begged to stay but was required to return to the public orphanage where she had been placed.  Mia and Costel worked with the orphanage personnel and months later she was brought to Mia’s Children where she remained.  This was such an important moment in the life of this child!

Nica has plans to impact Romania and that includes being a music teacher and conductor. Through Mia’s Children, Nica, auditioned and sang as a member of The Romanian Children’s Radio Choir which was founded in 1945, and is one of the most outstanding children’s choirs in Romania.  Going to Music School is a dream come true for Nica — a victory for Romania — and what Mia’s Children is all about…

“Through the power of the Gospel, we aim to  equip, empower and raise up the

voiceless children of Bucharest – thereby presenting the love of Jesus Christ to Romania.”

 

BOARD TALK  –  ART FROM THE HEART

 The Board along with Mia and all the children want to thank all of you who participated in the Art From The Heart fundraiser in August.  Special thanks to Linda and Bob Miller who came in from Arizona to serve; Talana Patterson who created and donated the beautiful centerpieces; St. Patrick Presbyterian Church for providing advertising and support; and for all the servers and planners who made last minute adjustments to make the event happen.

Most importantly, the Board wants to thank all of you who came to the event, committed to support us financially for the next year (over $10,000) and enjoyed the evening of art and celebration of the 20th year of Mia’s Children.  The successes we see day to day are all because you care and we thank you for your support!

 

MIA’S MESSAGE

“We thank Mia’s Children Foundation, to its founders and every friend who thinks, acts, help, pray thereby fulfilling the commandments of Jesus.

The harvest season began. The Lord speaks so well of the fruits that we collect as a result of our work as Christians. That’s why we bring glory and thanks to Him for the 20 years since Mia’s Children Foundation exist in the US, created by the Castle family to which friends were added. People with big souls who believe in the power of love, which helps socially disadvantaged children, orphans, those to suffer, here in Romania.

What a wonderful testimony of faith, what a declaration of love over physical and time barriers written and read at candle light and Divine Love given to people in times in which the gap between beliefs, social systems, economic and political deepen.

Returned home, I hit another facet of reality… preparation for a new school year involving uniforms, school supplies, backpacks school, books, shoes, clothes, new requirements imposed by each school, for each student.  And believe me it is hard when you have to multiply each care 40 times. Daily I ran with children to do medical tests, because I wanted to know if TB returned.  Findings: Many children need iron, are carrying golden staph, hemolytic staph, high ASLO and some of them are having intestinal parasites. We will see what treatment the doctor prescribes. I was sent home with vitamins, so the children started the vitamin treatment.

With Rachel’s help we could buy some of the needed school supplies, others were donated by different persons so that each child has a backpack and books necessary for the beginning of the school year. Thank you Rachel and to all our friends!

Like any story, end of summer was a celebration of joy, in which we sang and danced in the gentle autumn sun in the Japanese Garden of Herastrau.  People that came to the park remained enthusiastic and excited about the diverse talents of our children: singing, dancing, improvisation, theater play… an explosion of life that is coming from the love of some people to help these kids discover a safety life, education, love and trust in our Savior Jesus Christ.

We are continuing praying for the founders and our friends from America, thanking everyone for their constant support.  May God bless you and bring you peace, tranquility and prosperity across America and Romania!”

Love,  Mia

 

Coming Next Month:  The story of Matthew and Mona – An Inspiration for many people!

Painting and Prayer

 in Painting and Prayer / Romania  tagged children / prayer / Romania / statelessness by

Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

Psalm 139:16


Lord we praise you for allowing some of our children to receive their ID cards this week! Thank you for an answer to many years of prayer. Please continue to protect the children who do not have IDs, who are stateless. Only you can give us true identity – please do so for them. Amen.

Romania’s National Anthem

 in Communism / Music / Romania  tagged Communism / music / national anthem / protest / Revolution / Romania / song by

Romanians have sung “Deșteaptă-te, române” at revolutionary events since the 1848 revolution against the Habsburg empire. It aided them in their fight against the Nazis and served as a symbol of the former way of life during decades of dictatorship.

The song, which translates “Awaken Thee, Romanian,” was outlawed under Communism and became a call to arms for protestors and rebels in 1989. Shortly after the fall of Communism, it became the national anthem.

Read the lyrics with English translation here, and listen to the song below:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL3dCT8i3ew&feature=related&rel=0]

Trafficking in Romania

 in Abuse / Europe / Politics / Romania  tagged children / CNN / crime / Europe / European Union / human rights / human trafficking / Romania by

(CNN) — Romania has become a major transit for the sale of people into the European Union. Victims as young as 12 years old are trafficked into Romania from destinations as far-reaching as Honduras, Afghanistan, the Congo, and China. Once they reach Romania, many of these victims are assigned for passage beyond into Western Europe.

While Romanian law officially prohibits all forms of human trafficking, the country’s strategic geographic location — a crossroads between East and West — makes it a source, transit and destination country for the people trade. The country’s 2007 admission into the European Union brought more relaxed border regulations and enhanced its attraction for international human traffickers.

Read the full article at CNN.com

Happy Fourth of July from Mia

 in God / History / Prayer / Romania / United States  tagged democracy / Fourth of July / Independence Day / liberty / Mia's Children / Romania / United States by

From Mia Scarlat:

Beloved friends,

Happy Independence Day to you!

May always the hand of God be with America!

You are such a wonderful example for the world, for the history of development of the society!

May you always keep your standards up and speak to the world about faith, democracy, liberty!

May God bless America!

We are so proud to be part from your friends. Your help for our country means so much!

Always yours,

Mia’s Children

Dangerous Weather in Romania

 in Bucharest / Romania / Weather  tagged Crasna / Danube / Flood / Heat / Heat Stroke / heat wave / Natural Disaster / Prut / Romania by

Serious flooding has damaged twenty-eight counties in Romania in the last day.

The Prut, Crasna and Danube Rivers have caused 3 deaths so far and widespread damage across the country. The counties Cluj and Alba have been hit particularly hard.

The Prut, before flooding

In Bucharest, officials are taking steps to protect the city from flooding, including the employment of water evacuation pumps and monitoring of roadways. But so far these measures are largely preventative: Bucharest has not reported any serious problems.

At the same time, the capitol is preparing for coming heat waves. Romania annually has problems with heat-related deaths, and Bucharest is no exception. The city plans to wash the sidewalks and streets with detergent twice a week to help diminish dust.

Let’s pray for the people whose lives have been washed away by the flooding, and that more damage can be prevented as the rivers continue to fill up. And let’s pray for the people of Bucharest and our family at Mia’s Children as they prepare for this year’s dangerous heat.

Slavery in Romania

 in Abuse / Bucharest / Education / Home / poverty / Romania  tagged gospel / Hillary Clinton / human trafficking / Mia's Children / Romania / TIP Report by

This past week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton released the 2010 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, which reports on the State Department’s recommendations in fighting human trafficking worldwide.

Human trafficking is a criminal activity in which people are recruited, harbored, transferred, bought or kidnapped to serve an exploitative purpose, such as sexual slavery and forced labor.

The report rates each country in their efforts to fight human trafficking, with Tier 1 being the highest rating and Tier 3 the lowest. Romania received a Tier 2 rating.

According to the report:

Romania is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced labor and women and children in forced prostitution.

Romanian men, women, and children are trafficked within the country for commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor, including forced begging and petty theft. In 2009, the majority of trafficking victims identified within the country were victims of forced labor…including forced begging.

The report goes on to say that more measures can and should be taken by the Romanian government to stop trafficking.

But we already knew a lot of this, because the children who come to us have often been either victims or witnesses of human trafficking. Extreme poverty in Bucharest’s poorest neighborhoods has led to many forms of criminal activity. Innocent children get lost in the shuffle at best, and trafficked at worst.

Mia’s Children provides counseling and education for these young people from the hard streets of Bucharest. And most importantly we work to offer them a home and a sense of belonging that is based on the truth and love of the gospel.

That is how we are fighting the horrors of human trafficking – and let us tell you, it works!

Ceausescu’s Body to Be Exhumed

 in Bucharest / Communism / God / History / Jesus / Mia's Children / Politics / Romania  tagged Austrian Times / Ceausescu / Christmas / Communism / Death / Revolution by

Arguments over the death of Romania’s most infamous dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, will soon be put to rest.

On Sunday the Austrian Times reported that Ceausescu’s son Valentin has won a four-year court battle for the right to exhume his father’s body in order to answer questions about his parents’ fate.

Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena ran Romania with an iron fist from 1965-1989. Following a violent coup in December of 1989, the couple was arrested and tried. They were executed on Christmas Day, and their bodies were dragged through the streets on national television.

Regardless, rumors have persisted that the couple actually escaped and that two other bodies were buried in their place in Bucharest. Valentin Ceausescu hopes to solve this matter by exhuming his father’s body.

The Grave of Nicolae Ceausescu – Ghencea Civil Cemetery, Bucharest

The first time I traveled to Romania, I was shocked by the aftermath of this powerful couple. It was 2005, over 15 years after the fall of communism, and yet people still referred to events as “before Ceausescu” and “after Ceausescu.”

The revolution, which was in many ways similar to a bloody coup, took the life of Mia’s brother and became a catalyst to her and Costel becoming Christians and starting Mia’s Children.

Indeed, many people’s histories are tied to Nicolae Ceausescu and his assumed death. If for some unlikely reason the myths of his and his wife’s survival are found to be true, the country will need some way to regain the closure they should have had in 1989 – a closure that, in many ways, Romanians would still like to experience fully today.

– Joanna Miller

You Can Make the Difference

 in Art / Bucharest / Film / Fundraiser / Mia's Children / Music / Roma people / Romania  tagged art exhibit / celebrities / concert / documentary / politicians by

Last Thursday in Bucharest, Mia’s Children Romania was honored with a film premiere, art exhibit and concert. The event raised funds and awareness for the organization.

The documentary film’s Romanian title is “Tu poti face diferenta!” (“You Can Make the Difference!”).

According to Mia, the movie begins with a segment about the crisis of Romanian children: young beggars, homeless gypsy children, and life on the streets.

But then a gate opens and viewers enter the yard at Mia’s Children’s current house. The rest of the film focuses on the work we do and the possibility of change for the children of Romania. Our children speak about their experiences coming from the streets to Mia’s Children, and some politicians and celebrities chime in as well.

Mia saw the film for the first time on Thursday. “During the movie all the people were so silent and you could see many tears in the eyes,” she said. “Many confessed after that the movie touched their hearts very deep. Of course I cried a lot – you know me!”

Mia hopes to send the film our way when it is finished.  We would love to see it, and to share it with our supporters and friends. We’ll let you all know as we learn more about the project.