THE WORD ON THE STREETS Loving the cast-off children of Albania
THE WORD ON THE STREETS Loving the cast-off children of Albania
By Andre van der Bergh
It all started with a bag of bananas. Late one evening last February, one of our friends went on an outreach to sailors in the port area of Durr�s, Albania. While sharing the gospel on an Indian ship, one of the crew gave him a bag of bananas. My friend tried to refuse it. What would he do with a whole bag of bananas? But the Indian insisted and gave it to him when he left the ship. While walking through the port, his eyes fell on a group of children sitting between containers. He went over to them and gave them the bananas. Much to his surprise, more and more children came out from behind the containers. He asked them what they were all doing there at 11 at night, and then started to hear their stories. There and then he caught the vision to open a centre for street children, in Durr�s. We have been running the centre now for nine months, and God has been blessing us richly. We rented a house in the centre of the city and about fifty children come three times a week to receive a warm meal, clothes…and stories of Jesus. Some of the children also sleep at the centre during the night, but unfortunately we cannot accommodate all who would like to come. We would like to see this ministry grow and are looking at buying a piece of ground to build a centre. Let me tell you about the children. About 70% are gypsies, and their ages range between 5 and 17. Most of them have never learned to read and write although they can write their names. The kids sleep between containers in the port area, in the open air. In the winter they huddle up against each other for warmth. Some of the children were sold to child traffickers for sexual exploitation, but they ran away to try to make a living on the street. Others have had some of their organs cut out for sale on the black market, to organ clinics in Italy. A kidney goes for 1500 Euros. The system provides an easy way for the parents to get their hands on money. Because of fear of their parents, these children run away and turn for help at our centre. Some of the girls are sold into prostitution. One, Senada, was left on the streets when she was 6 years old. She is now 14, and we have just found out she is pregnant. During the day you can see these children on the streets, begging and receiving the kicks and curses of people passing by. We thank the Lord that we can show them God’s love and grace. The word on the streets of Durr�s is that there is a place for street kids to go, where they can be loved. More and more new children are coming to us daily. Only one other centre of its kind exists in Albania. Our vision is to see a new facility built as soon as possible, for the place we have at the moment is inadequate. We want to train these children to read and write. We want to teach the older ones a specific trade like sewing, hairdressing, carpentry and running a small business. Each day we are dealing with different trauma cases. Some of the children are being sexually abused by their family members, others were thrown out in the street and told never to return to their families. We also have orphans with no one to take care of them. Some kids also have medical problems that need attention, like Mariglen, a 14-year-old with no bladder control. Sometimes as he stands talking to me or others he wets himself. The disorder makes him smell and no one wants to go near him. We have taken the boy for tests and it seems that this is a medical as well as a psychological problem. We also have children who have had one or both legs cut off. This atrocity is mostly done by parents, who then drop them in a busy road so passers-by will throw money at them. Some of their wounds are bleeding continuously and they need medical help. We love these children so much, and we know that God can change their lives and give them hope. Every Wednesday my wife, Lidy, and I hold a kids’ club for them. They are always so eager to hear about Jesus and to learn new memory verses. Some of them have received Jesus as their Saviour and we can already see a change in them. They now understand that they are not alone. They have a Father taking care of them. Will you please keep us and the centre in your prayers? Ask God with us for land and funds. For more info on the centre and our ministry, please feel free to contact us at andrelidy@yahoo.co.uk
10/06/2005"
