SALT LAKE CITY - Bridge of Love is pleased to announce its 2nd annual RACE for HOPE 5k! Bridge of Love is teaming up with local businesses for the RACE for HOPE 5k run/walk at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009 at the Cottonwood Complex, 4400 South 1300 East, Holladay, Utah. The registration fee, which includes a t-shirt, is only $25 prior to Oct. 23 ( $30 the day of the race) and 100% of the proceeds will go to benefit the abandoned Romanian children and teens served by Bridge of Love.
To register: Visit www.bridgeoflove.net and select the 2009 Race for Hope link to be directed to the online registration form. In-person day of race registration is also available at the Cottonwood Complex. Pre registration is encouraged!
By registering for the 2009 Race for Hope, you are helping to further our efforts! While not required, we encourage you to make an even bigger difference by asking family, friends, neighbors or co-workers to sponsor you in the race by making a donation of any amount to Bridge of Love. (Additional information will be provided following race registration.)
Medals will be awarded to the top runners in each age group. All participants will be eligible to win prize drawings after the race, and a special prize drawing will be held for those who raise the target amount of $300.
Please join us to make a difference for the abandoned Romanian children served by Bridge of Love. And tell your friends!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
New Bridge of Love video
Check out Bridge of Love's new video at: http://www.bridgeoflove.net/video2009.html. It shows how the foundation is making a difference in the lives of the abandoned Romanian children and teens in our program thanks to the support we receive fro...m people like you! The video was produced this summer by two volunteers, Quin Boardman and Dave Trevino of And Art Design, www.andartdesign.com. Our earlier video with more scenes of the children when they were younger, including some at a hospital before the children were placed in homes with foster families, is also on our Web site at: http://www.bridgeoflove.net/video.html.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
Romania Day 3!
Goodness we've been busy!
We left camp yesterday and met back at the foundation and had a quick meeting about everyone's thoughts on camp. We had a productive meeting and got a lot of great ideas about camp in the future. Then we loaded up the Bridge of Love-mobile (Sorin's car) and headed out to Child Protection Services. They house all of the abused children and work a lot with the abandoned children in Elena Farago. They have an artist named Costica who teaches his skills to the children in that center and Elena Farago. He has done some amazing things and if he sees a child with some art talent he will give them private lessons and access to his supplies. (Oana, who was in the Bridge to Success program a few years back was one of his artists.) He showed us around his studio and took us into the rooms where the children live where they have painted great Disney scenes on the wall. He does amazing things with those children.
After that we drove over to the Elena Farago placement center which is where the orphans who are teenagers live. Last year they hired a new director and it has made a world of difference. The teens there are doing more chores and work with cooks to make their own food. Its definitely a happier atmosphere and the Director is a good man. They have a separate apartment on the property where a few of our Bridge to Success teens live. This apartment gives them a little more freedom and is really good for teaching these boys to take care of themselves. We also went into a conference room where they set up exibitions for these artists that work with Costica. The last time they set up an exibition the television stations and newspapers didn't come because they didn't think anyone in the center would make anything worth while but apparently word got around because they are planning a second one and hope it will be a great success!
Thursday night was our dinner with the staff. We met at Alona's and everyone was dressed up and spouses were invited. We had a great time sitting together and laughing and getting to know each other without having to chase down children every few seconds. This staff truly is amazing. They are intelligent and personable and are taking incredible care of these children. They understand our vision and are the people who are making it happen. I can't even express my love for that group of people.
This morning we had our last day of camp. The children rehearsed their plays for the last time and we talked about having Courage to be yourself and stay true to yourself and make good decisions. They also made gifts for their mothers. We had lunch together and I think those children ingested half of the pizza in Barlad. Then it was time for their performances!! The older children performed a play about a kingdom that had problems that needed solving. The middle group performed about a lion who went into the forest and needed courage to get out. The youngest children performed Snow White, complete with seven dwarfs singing Hi Ho! and marching around the stage. It was incredible. They were so thrilled to be up on stage and show their parents what they've been doing and it turned out great. After the performances all of the children got on stage and held up letters that spelled "WE LOVE YOU BRIDGE OF LOVE!" (Which, of course, made us all cry) and we snapped pictures like crazy. We handed them their brand new backpacks filled with school supplies and said goodbye! They are the sweetest children and kissed and hugged us all as they went out.
This week was all about those wonderful children and I truly hope we showed them a good time. They are incredible spirits and I am so happy we can all come together to make this happen. I truly feel blessed to have this experience (4 years in a row!). These children are very resilient to what they have gone through and with all of our help and their own naturally amazing spirits, they will grow into wonderful adults. I love these children and I am so happy we had a great success this year.
We left camp yesterday and met back at the foundation and had a quick meeting about everyone's thoughts on camp. We had a productive meeting and got a lot of great ideas about camp in the future. Then we loaded up the Bridge of Love-mobile (Sorin's car) and headed out to Child Protection Services. They house all of the abused children and work a lot with the abandoned children in Elena Farago. They have an artist named Costica who teaches his skills to the children in that center and Elena Farago. He has done some amazing things and if he sees a child with some art talent he will give them private lessons and access to his supplies. (Oana, who was in the Bridge to Success program a few years back was one of his artists.) He showed us around his studio and took us into the rooms where the children live where they have painted great Disney scenes on the wall. He does amazing things with those children.
After that we drove over to the Elena Farago placement center which is where the orphans who are teenagers live. Last year they hired a new director and it has made a world of difference. The teens there are doing more chores and work with cooks to make their own food. Its definitely a happier atmosphere and the Director is a good man. They have a separate apartment on the property where a few of our Bridge to Success teens live. This apartment gives them a little more freedom and is really good for teaching these boys to take care of themselves. We also went into a conference room where they set up exibitions for these artists that work with Costica. The last time they set up an exibition the television stations and newspapers didn't come because they didn't think anyone in the center would make anything worth while but apparently word got around because they are planning a second one and hope it will be a great success!
Thursday night was our dinner with the staff. We met at Alona's and everyone was dressed up and spouses were invited. We had a great time sitting together and laughing and getting to know each other without having to chase down children every few seconds. This staff truly is amazing. They are intelligent and personable and are taking incredible care of these children. They understand our vision and are the people who are making it happen. I can't even express my love for that group of people.
This morning we had our last day of camp. The children rehearsed their plays for the last time and we talked about having Courage to be yourself and stay true to yourself and make good decisions. They also made gifts for their mothers. We had lunch together and I think those children ingested half of the pizza in Barlad. Then it was time for their performances!! The older children performed a play about a kingdom that had problems that needed solving. The middle group performed about a lion who went into the forest and needed courage to get out. The youngest children performed Snow White, complete with seven dwarfs singing Hi Ho! and marching around the stage. It was incredible. They were so thrilled to be up on stage and show their parents what they've been doing and it turned out great. After the performances all of the children got on stage and held up letters that spelled "WE LOVE YOU BRIDGE OF LOVE!" (Which, of course, made us all cry) and we snapped pictures like crazy. We handed them their brand new backpacks filled with school supplies and said goodbye! They are the sweetest children and kissed and hugged us all as they went out.
This week was all about those wonderful children and I truly hope we showed them a good time. They are incredible spirits and I am so happy we can all come together to make this happen. I truly feel blessed to have this experience (4 years in a row!). These children are very resilient to what they have gone through and with all of our help and their own naturally amazing spirits, they will grow into wonderful adults. I love these children and I am so happy we had a great success this year.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Romania Day 2!
We have successfully survived another day of Camp!
Yesterday after camp and lunch with the teens, we headed out to the orphanage for the children with special needs. We took a big box of toys and had so much fun handing out stuffed animals to the kids there. They loved having new things to play with. They are well taken care of and doing really well! It has been fun for me to go back year after year and see the progress they are making with those children.
After dinner we took over the Hotel Moldova "conference room" (which is about the size of a closet!) and sorted out all of the darling pictures we've taken of the children at camp. Mary, one of our wonderful volunteers, put together memory books for the children and was taking pictures like crazy getting enough of them for each child to make a book. We printed them all and sorted them into piles so each child can glue the pictures of themselves into the books. They turned out so cute and these children definitely love to have pictures taken of themselves!
We woke up this morning and got ready for day 2 of camp. We worked more on their performances and helped each of them make a costume or prop for their part in the play. They loved being able to take part in designing. I was working with Ionela D. who is playing Cinderella and wanted a pink crown. She was dumping out pink, purple and silver glitter glue on the crown and then would spread it all out with her fingers. By the finished product, the ground was littered with empty bottles of glitter and both she and I were covered in glitter!
The staff of the foundation here in Barlad has also been helping the children make crafts. They have been making beautiful baskets of flowers and bouquets of paper flowers. The staff is wonderful and the kids adore them. They are very caring and have made a lot of progress with those kids. They love working with the children and it has been really fun to get to know them and their families. They are so accommodating when we get here and I think they shut down their whole lives when we get here (ESPECIALLY Sorin!) to make sure we have all of the help we could possibly need.
Again, being here makes me realize what a difference we all (volunteers, donors, supporters, etc) are making on these children. Their progress year after year is astounding and I am so proud of the people they are turning into. The work we all do is really making miracles happen out here and I love seeing that!
Yesterday after camp and lunch with the teens, we headed out to the orphanage for the children with special needs. We took a big box of toys and had so much fun handing out stuffed animals to the kids there. They loved having new things to play with. They are well taken care of and doing really well! It has been fun for me to go back year after year and see the progress they are making with those children.
After dinner we took over the Hotel Moldova "conference room" (which is about the size of a closet!) and sorted out all of the darling pictures we've taken of the children at camp. Mary, one of our wonderful volunteers, put together memory books for the children and was taking pictures like crazy getting enough of them for each child to make a book. We printed them all and sorted them into piles so each child can glue the pictures of themselves into the books. They turned out so cute and these children definitely love to have pictures taken of themselves!
We woke up this morning and got ready for day 2 of camp. We worked more on their performances and helped each of them make a costume or prop for their part in the play. They loved being able to take part in designing. I was working with Ionela D. who is playing Cinderella and wanted a pink crown. She was dumping out pink, purple and silver glitter glue on the crown and then would spread it all out with her fingers. By the finished product, the ground was littered with empty bottles of glitter and both she and I were covered in glitter!
The staff of the foundation here in Barlad has also been helping the children make crafts. They have been making beautiful baskets of flowers and bouquets of paper flowers. The staff is wonderful and the kids adore them. They are very caring and have made a lot of progress with those kids. They love working with the children and it has been really fun to get to know them and their families. They are so accommodating when we get here and I think they shut down their whole lives when we get here (ESPECIALLY Sorin!) to make sure we have all of the help we could possibly need.
Again, being here makes me realize what a difference we all (volunteers, donors, supporters, etc) are making on these children. Their progress year after year is astounding and I am so proud of the people they are turning into. The work we all do is really making miracles happen out here and I love seeing that!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Summer Camp Day 1
We are so excited to be here!
We left Salt Lake City an hour later than expected and then missed our connecting flight in Paris! After a seven hour wait we finally boarded a plane and landed in Bucharest at about 11:00 at night. Sorin met us at the airport and we then started the task of loading 19 boxes of supplies (our 13 and 6 others that were brought earlier), 6 very tired Americans, 6 suitcases from very tired Americans, 1 Sorin and 1 driver into the maxi-taxi. I think Sorin would make a champion Tetris player for all the shifting around and repacking he did! We drove about 4 hours and pulled into beautiful Barlad around 3:30 a.m. We were so happy to see Hotel Moldova and even happier to feel the sweet, sweet air conditioning as soon as we got in our room to sleep!
The next morning we went to the foundation office and started the awesome task of unloading the boxes. I can't even tell you how overwhelming it was to see all of the work that went into getting these supplies to these kids. It truly was a miracle how much stuff we got over here and I think all of us were sensing what an incredible blessing it was to have so many things to pass on to these children! I am so overwhelmed at how wonderful and giving everyone is. It was an incredible experience to see how much these children are loved. The unloading and organizning went quickly and we were happy to be joined by Sora (Sister) Lundberg and Josh Lundberg later in the day.
THis morning was the first day of camp. We got there and the children and families were so excited to see us! I love being able to come back year after year and see how much they've grown. They are all happy and healthy! We are doing a theatre rotation with each of our groups with Miriam, one of the volunteers who is studying Theatre Education at BYU. They are having a great time. The teens in the Bridge to Success program joined us and, as always, were a great help.
I am so thankful to be here and it has been wonderful to see this organization grow! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated time, money, supplies, thoughts and prayers to make this trip possible. These children are amazing and there is so much good happening here. Thank you!
We left Salt Lake City an hour later than expected and then missed our connecting flight in Paris! After a seven hour wait we finally boarded a plane and landed in Bucharest at about 11:00 at night. Sorin met us at the airport and we then started the task of loading 19 boxes of supplies (our 13 and 6 others that were brought earlier), 6 very tired Americans, 6 suitcases from very tired Americans, 1 Sorin and 1 driver into the maxi-taxi. I think Sorin would make a champion Tetris player for all the shifting around and repacking he did! We drove about 4 hours and pulled into beautiful Barlad around 3:30 a.m. We were so happy to see Hotel Moldova and even happier to feel the sweet, sweet air conditioning as soon as we got in our room to sleep!
The next morning we went to the foundation office and started the awesome task of unloading the boxes. I can't even tell you how overwhelming it was to see all of the work that went into getting these supplies to these kids. It truly was a miracle how much stuff we got over here and I think all of us were sensing what an incredible blessing it was to have so many things to pass on to these children! I am so overwhelmed at how wonderful and giving everyone is. It was an incredible experience to see how much these children are loved. The unloading and organizning went quickly and we were happy to be joined by Sora (Sister) Lundberg and Josh Lundberg later in the day.
THis morning was the first day of camp. We got there and the children and families were so excited to see us! I love being able to come back year after year and see how much they've grown. They are all happy and healthy! We are doing a theatre rotation with each of our groups with Miriam, one of the volunteers who is studying Theatre Education at BYU. They are having a great time. The teens in the Bridge to Success program joined us and, as always, were a great help.
I am so thankful to be here and it has been wonderful to see this organization grow! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated time, money, supplies, thoughts and prayers to make this trip possible. These children are amazing and there is so much good happening here. Thank you!
Monday, July 6, 2009
2009 summer volunteer trip to Romania
Six volunteers left for Romania on July 5th. Marilyn, Amanda, Mary, Elizabeth, Miriam and Heather. They'll spend about a week in the town of Barlad, providing a three-day summer camp for the children in our program, spending time with the teens and young adults in our Bridge to Success program, and participating in other service activities.
They are also delivering 13 50-pound boxes of donated clothing, toys, school supplies and other needed items. (We were up until about 3:30 a.m. the night before the trip working to finish packing the boxes, but we got it done just in time!)
Amanda, and perhaps other volunteers, will be blogging about their experiences while they are in Romania. Stay tuned!
- Jeff
They are also delivering 13 50-pound boxes of donated clothing, toys, school supplies and other needed items. (We were up until about 3:30 a.m. the night before the trip working to finish packing the boxes, but we got it done just in time!)
Amanda, and perhaps other volunteers, will be blogging about their experiences while they are in Romania. Stay tuned!
- Jeff
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