Speranţă

Amazing to think we have been back for 8 days. As we travelled we drove through snow and temperatures of minus 2, for the first few days it was wet and muddy but today it feels like spring and a lot warmer. It has been great to have Jackie with us and to share our work here . I have caught up with paperwork and Jackie has helped to sort boxes and bags. we have distributed aid to families and other charities who we work in conjunction with.

As well as catching up with the families living in the Hands of Hope homes we have visited around 25 other families with food parcels some who live in a village near the Ukraine border. The village is about 10 miles away over rough roads on the way back the Pajero rescued 2 vans. First a white box van stuck in the mud then a tip up truck which had landed in a ditch!

Highlight of last week was to attend the baptism of one of the ladies who lives house built by Hands of Hope a few years ago.

Last Friday we went to our friend Liviu's church and heard the renowned speaker Alejandro Rodriguez from YWAM Argentina. A message to encourage and empower the young people in the church, He spoke in Spanish and was translated into Romanian and we understood most/some of it!

On Saturday we had 18 children in the cottage and spent a lovely 3 hours doing craft activities and playing games. Hope the weather will continue to improve so we can get the bikes and outside games out this weekend.

On Monday Jackie and I spent time at the Star of Hope Centre in Dorohoi and it was wonderful to see how much progress some of the children have made in the past 8 weeks.

The warmer and drier weather has enabled outside work to commence and the men at Cobila have been helping to improve the site by laying drainage tubes. We hope it will soon be warm enough to get planting in the garden and on the fields.

Funds were donated to buy another goat to supply milk for the families in the homes at Cobila. now all we have to do is source the goat, went to the market this morning and to another farm this afternoon but not found the right one yet. Hope to contact someone else tomorrow so watch this space. The cow at Cobila is threatened with the BBQ if she takes much longer to become prgnant! She was named "Speranta" or in English Hope, by the guy who looks after her and she has given lots of lovely milk but needs to be in calf again so this can continue.

please get in touch if you want more info about work in Romania and let us know what you think of the blog. ruth@handsofhope.org.im

3 people, 3 days, 3000kg, 3000km

Jackie, Chris & Ruth, left the Isle of Man on the Friday evening ferry and arrived in Dorohoi 3 days later. 3000km (1864miles) driven carrying a 3000kg load of aid and building supplies. Having travelled for over 27 hours we stopped for our first night in Nurnburg. Day 2 we crossed the rest of Germany, Austria and Hungary arriving at the hotel on the border around midnight. our final day was the drive across Romania. This final leg is only 361km (225 miles) and we would expect it to take us 8-9 hours of almost solid driving. On Monday it took us 10 hours as we encounted heavy snow across the mountains. we arrived about 6.30pm and spent a couple of hours unloading the car and catching up with the families at Cobila. A lovely welcome from them all. It was cold this morning around 0C, apparantly it was snowing here at the weekend, now we only have heavy rain which means mud mud and more mud. Today we have been busy showing Jackie around Dorohoi, meeting families and more unpacking & sorting clothes ready for distribution.

Leaving IOM for ROM

Well we are all packed up and ready to leave family and friends in the Isle of Man and reunion with friends in Romania. We have travelling with us Jackie and we are taking a trailer with some aid but also the first delivery of house parts for the building project this year. Thanks to James and all those who have helped putting the timber frame panels together, sorting clothes, mending bikes and loading the trailer.

We have a maximum load and the next three days will be spent trundling across Europe hoping to arrive in Dorohoi Monday evening.

Building team and a group from Living Hope Community Church will be arriving in 5 weeks, lots to do before then.