HopeHouse International®

A Ministry for Orphans

HopeHouse Son, 12 years old

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Benjamin

Benjamin lived with his birth mother, an alcoholic, and was very attached to her. During his childhood he faced many challenges. Because his mother could not provide him with housing, they lived at a train station and often faced cruelty on the part of strange men. He lived in a constant state of fear. The state took him from his mother and sent him to live in an orphanage.

When we first met Benjamin at the orphanage, I (mom) befriended him. He hid behind me and did not leave my side. He was initially very afraid of my husband but over time he accepted and loved us and ceased to be afraid.

For some time, Ben lived with us under our guardian care because our conditions did not allow us to adopt. Although he was no longer afraid of us, he still had a terrible fear of people who visited our house.

At one point another family wanted to adopt him, but the thought of it terrified him. We realized we could not let him go through another loss because we loved him with all our hearts. HopeHouse International® is helping us overcome the obstacles with our housing which is allowing us to be approved for adoption. Ben is now officially our son.

We now have 11 HopeHouse children, six adopted and others in process of transitioning from guardianship to adoption. Almost all of them have gone through extreme trauma in their childhood and with God’s help, we are helping them deal with the consequences that trauma brings.

What can I say about Ben now? Glory to God, we have a great report! Ben has developed at a rapid rate and has wonderful qualities. At school, he is one of the best students. He likes to design and play strategic games. You can rely on him and he tries very hard to make good choices. Benjamin is smart, but modest. He is an example to our younger children and they try in many ways to be like him.

We are grateful that God brought Benjamin into our family and blessed us with such a wonderful son!

– Mom and Dad

Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

The Godzuk Family

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“Two of these five adopted children are birth-siblings. Their mom was an alcoholic, and was very cruel. At the time they were removed from the family, they were 5 years and 1.5 years old. The boy was left with numerous traces of physical violence, including cigarette burns. The emotional wounds sustained by the girl were even worse. Soon after they were removed from the family, they were adopted into our family through the ministry of HopeHouse International®.

When adopted, they brought all their pain with them. They did not trust anyone. They were waiting for abuse and violence. We had to work hard, work on ourselves and learn with the help of the Soul-Care™ Trauma Curriculum how to help our children overcome all the pain in their early lives. Step by step, journeying over disappointment, we helped them remove their armor of mistrust and alienation . . . layer by layer.

After time has passed, these children are now unrecognizable. Our daughter is a beautiful girl, gifted with creative talent and an artistic vision of the world – she paints beautiful pictures. Our son now trusts us and supports and cares for his younger siblings. He is doing well in school, playing soccer, and even likes to cook.

We see every day that the LOVE of Christ transforms and heals deeply wounded hearts. Thank you HopeHouse International® and Soul-Care™ for making us a family and giving us the tools and support we needed to help our children thrive.” 

– Mom and Dad (Godzuk Family) 

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Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

About the Author

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Hello. My name is Drew Turner.

I am a Christian, a college student and a Digital Media Major with a Business Minor. I was homeschooled from 7th grade through the 12th grade, and I had great friends and teachers. I love the outdoors. I love to play tennis, go boating, kayaking and jet skiing. I love to spend time with my family and friends. I love to walk on the golf course and collect golf balls when the golfers are done. I love to laugh.

I’ve been working for HopeHouse International® as their Social Media Coordinator since 2014. HopeHouse International® provides HOMES so that ORPHANS can be ADOPTED by Christian families and raised in their own country. Soul-Care™ Theurapeutic Curriculum is a counseling resource of HopeHouse International® that trains parents to help their adopted children/teens/young adults journey from emotional brokenness to wholeness. I am the author of two Soul-Care™ Journals, one for children and one for students. These Journals use intentional prompting questions on each page that go directly to the hearts of the Soul-Care™ matter.

I’ve been asked to write blogs for HopeHouse International®. These blogs will be about my experiences, things that I have learned along the way, and ways that God has been leading me. I hope my blogs will be fun to read and a source of encouragement to readers. At the end of my blogs, I will share scripture and a youtube song lyric video for further engagement.

I’m Drew Turner, and I approve this message.

Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

Seeing Stasch Again

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Hi everyone! My name is Andy Whisenant and I have the incredible opportunity of working with the amazing HopeHouse International team in Ukraine this week. I’ve been blown away each day as this team serves with everything they have and as they love these beautiful kids well.
Yesterday we had the chance to spend time in Zapporrozhia at two different orphanages. We were so thankful for some shade and a cool breeze as we worked outside during the day.As the ship docked in Zapporrozhia, I started to recognize some of the sites from last year when we visited this same area. Our bus drove through the city neighborhoods until we pulled up to our first orphanage visit for the day.

I immediately recognized this first orphanage we were visiting. Last year when we visited this same orphanage, I met a little boy named Stasch. When we met him then, he had been left by his mother only a few days before our arrival. He kept asking up to just take him home. We had to tell him we didn’t know where he lived, which he countered with, “That’s ok, just take me to the bus station and I’ll find my way.”  (Insert the sound of your heart breaking into a couple of thousand pieces here).

As we walked through the orphanage yard and started to set up, I kept looking around for Stasch. My constant prayer for this last year, “Please, God, let him be in a loving home,” echoed through that orphanage yard.

After a few minutes, I saw Stasch. He was rolled outside in a bed, in restraints to keep him from hurting himself. And my heart just sank.

I went up to him and started to talk to him in my very limited Russian. We asked what had happened to him that would cause him to be bedridden and found out that because of malnutrition, his hip joint had been damaged and even the slightest fall could do major damage. The caretakers at the orphanage told us that he would have to remain in the bed with very little movement for up to two years.

Everything in me screamed, “No! This is not right! This cannot be!” Little boys are supposed to be in loving families where they’re told they matter. Little boys are supposed to be able to have proper nutrition to make them healthy and strong. Little boys are supposed to be able to run and jump and play.

I got to spend some quality time with Stasch, and for that I’m so very thankful. We sang songs, fought with balloon swords, did some face painting, and looked through his new Russian kids Bible together.

To say yesterday was a tough one is a bit of an understatement. But even in the midst of the darkness, where all hope seems to be lost, where little boys and girls grow up without families and are kept in bed for years at a time, I still choose to hope. I still choose to hope that this is not the end of Stasch’s story. I still choose to hope that, in the end, this injustice will be made right.

That is truly why HopeHouse International exists . . . so that one orphan at a time . . . one home at a time  . . . a child can experience the unconditional love of a family and the unconditional love of Christ. True HOPE!One of my favorite writers, Donald Miller, has said, “lets choose to do something really difficult, something that saves lives, and let’s do that thing with people we love.” The “something” that God’s invited this team to be a part of this week is really difficult. And while playing games and singing songs and giving hugs may not immediately fix the overwhelming orphan crisis in Ukraine, it gives these children a chance to feel healthy emotions, some for the very first time, which they will then associate with the day the American’s visited and the day they heard about Christ love for them. What a privilege! And a privilege to do this ‘something’ with people that I truly believe in and care about. That makes all the difference.

So we ask you to pray. Pray for little kids like Stasch who listened to us share the message of who Christ is — that they would come to personally know their Creator and discover their value and worth in Him. Pray for our team as we enter the downhill slope of this grand adventure. And pray about how you can be a part of this story too. I hear there’s a great HopeHouse International trip coming up next year (hint, hint).

-Andy

Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

Orphanage for Handicapped Children // Kherson, Ukraine

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Another great day! We visited the orphanage for handicapped children in Kherson, Ukraine and had an amazing time. It’s always a bit overwhelming to see, no matter how many times you’ve been. The thing that’s always amazing, however, is the joy that those children have upon seeing us.

One teenaged boy we met last year named Sasha, who is missing parts of his hands and feet from birth, peaked his head into the gym where we held our assembly, and then immediately darted back out into the hall. In a matter of minutes he came bounding back into the room wearing his full soccer uniform, field shoes included!

Julie Rogers from our group shared a message of hope with the children, telling them that God loves them exactly as they are, and wants them to know that they can depend on him for their lives and their future.

We then spent plenty of time painting faces, twirling wheels chairs around, and taking pictures with them. Again, the joy in the room was really something special. One teenaged girl in a wheelchair was having a heart painted on her forearm and would burst out laughing with every brushstroke because it tickled so much!

Some of the older boys (on crutches and all) and Will, Brian, Caleb, Logan, and me from our group headed out to the field to play soccer. Let’s just say that the kids played against us like they really, really wanted to win.

And win they did.

 

The injustice of the way these children are treated, not only when they are young but into adulthood as well, is immense…

But we made a dent in it today.

We drove a stake in the ground, we drew a line in the sand, and we pushed the darkness back.

We went into a place where loveis like a far away galaxy–fathomed but not experienced firsthand– and we brought it as close as an embrace.

We went somewhere children are treated as different than the rest of society because they have a physical handicap, and we showed them that they are special indeed, because they are made in the image of God and he loves them exactly as they are.

We served these beautiful children with dignity and love because that is what they deserve.

I can’t tell you how proud I am of our team and how happy I am to be a part of this work. Thank you again for your support and your continued prayer. We have another busy day tomorrow!

I hope to have some thoughts from other members of our group posted here over the next few days, so please check back!

Many Blessings,
Brandon

Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

First Orphanage Visits (2) – Sevastopol, Ukraine

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Greetings from Sevastopol!  We spent yesterday in Odessa recouping from two very long days of travel.

Today was another long day as we departed the ship around 9am in the direction of Yalta where we met our first group of orphans.  This facility was actually a place where all of the children were sick in varying degrees. We were told they all had some form of bone disease.  Many were not able to walk and had to be carried to the outdoor facility by our team members.  We spent some precious time singing with them, playing, painting faces, and taking photos of each of them to keep for themselves – a luxury ot offorded an orphan.

Several of the children who couldn’t walk were taken back inside the main building and put back down in bed.  I was so proud of our team who remembered them and went indoors to spend time with them.  

It was in one of these rooms that I met Igor.  He was maybe six or seven years old, and had actually been tied to the bed so that he wouldn’t try to escape and get hurt.  At the time I came in, there were only 2 children inside among the 30 or so empty beds, and one of our other team members was spending time with the boy at the other end of the room.  So I parked by Igor and began talking with him as best I could with my limited Russian.  I quickly learned that he derived great joy from simply hitting me over the head with the balloon sword one of our multi-talented clowns had blown up for him.  I can’t adequately describe the innocent and overwhelming joy of this boy, in spite of the fact that he was tied to a bed because of illness.

When I handed him the gift bag that our group assembled for each child, he went through each item with great deliberation and much amazement.  He immediately put on his winter hat, even though it was probably close to 100 degrees in that room.  After opening his new toothbrush and toothpaste, he asked me if I could bring him a bowl of water so that he could brush his teeth. (We’ve been told it is typical in some orphanages that 14 kids share one toothbrush)…

Even though I introduced myself and gave him my name, Igor preferred to call me “uncle”, and towards the end of our time at this orphanage, asked me repeatedly if I would be able to come back and see him tomorrow.  . .

What can you say to that?

I had to tell him that I was just visiting but did tell him I would be praying for him and that he was very precious. I explained that others from the local ministries would come and visit him when we were gone. (Follow-up outreach to orphans by local church ministries is very important to HopeHouse International).

Our work for the day was not done.  We visited another orphanage, this one in Simferopol.  Again, our group did an amazing job.  There was a time that a little boy attached himself to Laura and took her away from her station, and Charles  seamlessly stepped in and filled in for her.  Especially for a group on their first day, their awareness and sensitivity to the moment and to these children was amazing.

Among some other small stops, we also got to meet a HopeHouse father, Misha, who spoke at the February “An Evening of Hope” in Franklin, TN a few months ago. We also met 3 of his 10 children.  I was really struck, again, by his heart, and the fact that when he and his wife were looking to adopt their first orphaned child (after having 4 biological children), he continually thought of all the scriptures that tell us that we have been adopted into God’s family.  He said that if this was true, then he MUST adopt the hurting and the lonely into his family, as well.  They now have 5 biological children and have adopted 5 as well.

This was an incredibly successful and yet draining day, but one we will never forget.  As I’m sitting on the deck of the Dneiper Princess writing this, docked in Sevastopol, a fire work show just erupted in the air and lasted for about 15 minutes.  For some reason, that seems like an appropriate way to end today.  

We are all healthy and in great spirits.  We appreciate your prayers and miss you all very much.  Thank you for being a part of this adventure alongside us.

Many Blessings,
Brandon

PS I will try to have some members of our group blog over the next few days so that you can hear some different perspectives!

Copyright © 2019 HopeHouse International®

Welcome to HopeHouse International®

In many countries, adequate housing is a barrier for most citizens, and it is a government prerequisite for adoption in most cases. HopeHouse International® enables adoptions by addressing adequate housing needs which result in three or more children being given a family and a future. Won't you consider joining our mission. Learn more by clicking one of the areas of interest above.

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HopeHouse International® provides HOMES so that ORPHANS can be ADOPTED by Christian families and raised in their own country.

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HopeHouse International®
P.O. Box 1097
Franklin, TN 37065