| Victoria Higgins 2009 Volunteer |
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| Sunday, 25 October 2009 | |
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I can't believe that my time in Russia is already over and that I am now back in the States and separated from my children. The children in my group were by far the highlight of my entire time in St. Petersburg. At first I was so nervous around them- I have worked with children my entire life, but had never had the chance to work with children with disabilities. However, as I spent more time with them, things became so natural and I realized that these are just a bunch of kids like any other who need to feel special and know that someone cares about them. I felt that I learned so much from them, especially about being patient and giving and receiving unconditional love. When I was having a bad day or when I didn't want to hear another Russian word or when one of the Sanitarkas or nurses had just said something rude to me, I could always turn to my kids and I knew they would have a smile for me. It seemed so backwards- I was supposed to be the one that was brightening their days, but I felt like usually they would brighten mine first! These children are so sweet and innocent and in such dire need of love and attention that it has really broken my heart to leave them.
I think Podoroznik as an organization is doing a good job of getting volunteers into the orphanage and building up a positive relationship with the orphanage director and workers. Some of the Russian volunteers also work at the orphanage more full-time as "sanitarkas-in-training". They always bring in extra products and toys to better meet the children's need such as babywipes, toothpaste and cotton swabs and the new volunteer- cordinator from Poland has great vision for keeping the volunteers motivated and the kids challenged. She has only been working with Podorozhnik since the spring but Ewelina has been an invaluable addition to this organization and I hope she stays with them- she organized a couple seminars for the volunteers to attend to better serve and understand the children, cleaned out the toy room of any unneccessary toys, organized the day-to-day activities of the volunteers with the children and requently translated for the foreign volunteers. I didn't find the Russian volunteers or workers to be particularly friendly or helpful, so Ewelina was frequently a diffuser of miscommunications and a friendly face amongst the dreary expressions :) I knew going into this experience that I would A)never forget my time in Pavlosk orphanage number 4 and B)come home a changed person. Both of those statements are very true today and despite the rough patches and the loneliness, I am so grateful for any time that I got to spend with these beautiful children. This experience has reminded me how blessed I am in my life, inspired me to keep giving back, and has motivated me to search for new serving opportunities no matter what city I am living in. Thank you for choosing me to represent ANDORC, thank you for your support and I know those kids thank you for giving them one more person that could love them and acknowledge their presence in the world. |