Summer camp 2005

After the main group left for home, Ken, Genia and Ira joined the kids at their annual Summer Camp in the forest beside the Baltic Sea. The camp is located in a completely unspoilt area where the children can really enjoy themselves and let themselves go.

Our summer work load

Our target this year was to renovate eight new bedrooms and their adjoining landings, provide refurbished, re-tiled toilets and a washroom, install a new kitchen which we will equip to train the orphanage girls in domestic skills – and provide a small dining area alongside. We installed new electrics throughout and all the rooms and corridors were laid with new lino flooring. Ben and Alexei (the orphanage security guard) spent a couple of days repairing the roof on the north west wing above where the main works were taking place. Glass windows were replaced and some of the walls were taken down. Our volunteers, who toiled late into the night to get the projects finished, managed to complete everything – in just 8 days! In fact, the local newspaper sent a reporter to check out our activities at the orphanage. We still have a few items to pay for goal posts, kitchen utensils and, for the new TV room, security windows, a security door and a TV cabinet.

Our ‘Last Night Dinner/Party’ at ‘Trio’s’ went down well with all attendees. Many volunteers made speeches which were reciprocated by our Russian hosts.

The Achiever’s Award for 2005 went to Colin Pethick, while David Finch picked up a retrospective award for his efforts in 2004. They both received an engraved Russian hip flask.

              

 

Our sincere thanks go to…

Mike Ferrier who donated £500 for the purchase of a TV and DVD/VCR player for use in the new TV room.

Dave Moody who held a fundraising auction at ‘The Bootle Arms’, Liverpool –his local pub. This produced a £500 donation from the Pathfinder Local Hero’s Foundation, plus funds from the regulars. The money raised went towards much needed materials for our trip.

A new football kit was donated by Woolton Warlocks from Liverpool for the orphanage boys to start their own football team.

Graham Surridge, David Finch, Ben and Ken Harper and the three army lads, for taking an extra four days off work to form the advance party. Their task was to get the place gutted and stripped so that the other volunteers could start work on arrival.

Jenny Burton, President of the Sevenoaks branch of ‘Soroptimist International’ (this is a worldwide group whose aims are to serve the community at local level and address larger issues at national and international level) kindly donated £1000.00 for the orphanage girls’ new domestic science kitchen. They have adopted us as a worthwhile charity to support.

Once again, our grateful thanks go to ICI Paints: Dulux who donated 70 gallons of paint (see picture below of newly painted corridor), and even delivered it by road to the orphanage door at Kingisepp from their new Moscow depot. It transpired that they needed the children’s help to unload their cargo as the orphanage was down a lane which was too narrow for their truck. Their kindness in delivering the paint enabled us to take more necessary goods and equipment in our van.

 

Elizabeth Coxon-Taylor invited Jenny Burton and Ken Harper to Pembury Library, Kent for the launch of her latest book, ‘Brewing, Ballet and Bedpans’. She managed to raise £385.00 which she very kindly donated to our Komso Charity.

Sally Durant and her team for organising one of their ‘1st Friday’ lunches (held on the first Friday of every month) for the benefit of our charity. The event raised a gratefully accepted £200.00.

Thanks also go to Genia, Tanya, Natasha and Alesia for giving us their time and interpreting for us, and the Director and Staff for helping with the food and making us most welcome.

Kim Bloomfield for raising 50% of the cash needed to pay for the children’s T-shirts.

Queens School in Kew for donating toys and holding a mufti day to raise money so that one of their parents (Kim Bloomfield – see above) could come on the trip.

Sam Knowd and the other volunteers from Liverpool who bought video cassettes and DVDs for the new TV room, toothpaste, toothbrushes and toiletries, football tops, colouring books, pens and crayons and two CD players for the kids enjoyment.

Finally, we would like to thank Mike Lee for an unexpected donation. Through his contacts at Heathrow he was offered a substantial quantity (approx 41 cartons) of various gift items*. These were originally destined for a Russian Charity by airfreight. Sadly, due to financial constraints the consignment never left our shores. Mick, being a trustee and a committee member of our charity, had his name put forward as a possible recipient and the goods were gratefully accepted. We plan to take these to Russia on our next trip. The donors will be very pleased to hear that the consignment will eventually end up being distributed to needy children in Russia which was their original intention.

Charity Notes

We would like to offer a warm welcome to all our new volunteers – Kim Bloomfield, Hollie Bacon, Steve Brockman, Brendan Gordon, Chris Smith and Abby Gedge.

Interestingly, several of our volunteers are now learning to speak Russian.

We will be organising an advance trip early in the new year to establish which projects deserve our priority attention – either returning to the orphanage for the fourth year running, or investigating a recent request by the Director of the Re-habilitation Centre at the Hospital in St. Petersburg to talk about some urgently needed work that needs doing? We will find out and let you know.

Please ask all your friends to shop at www.buy.at/komsokids on our homepage as we get commission on all sales, and anything you or your friends buy on line gives the Charity between 1% and 8% of the money spent.

Our annual AGM will be held on February 4th, 2006 at the ‘Town Wharf’, Isleworth.

 

We hope you all have a very Happy Christmas and a rewarding New Year!