by SLAVA VASHENKO
Leader of St. Petersburg work

Runaways from good homes

The thoughts of many children (and even adults!) follow the adage: "I'm better off anywhere else than where I am." In drifting, searching for happiness, many end up shipwrecked. Fortunately, we have been able to help may of these "prodigal sons" to return home!

Move into the big city drove Kristina on the streets

Kristina had a good home and family in Tshelyabinsk. She went to school, practiced judo and was successful in competitions. However, the move to St. Petersburg was a turning point.

Kristina joined the gang at the Dybenko metro station, sniffed glue and slept on the streets for extended periods of time. The strong girl was respected, even the boys didn't dare to challenge her.

Many times we took Kristina home literally by the hand. The girl was ashamed to go home alone, since she knew that her parents were greatly sorrowful because of her. We tried to encourage Kristina to leave the streets. She was a talented girl who wouldn't have a difficult life.

Finally the girl came to her senses. She has now been home for many months. We call her often, and it is always great to hear that all is well with her!

Pasha - A Boy Without Boundaries

Pasha is a happy boy with energy to spare. He was an eager participant of our street patrol, day activity center, and our camps.

At the age of 11, Pasha started to sniff glue and drink. The situation got worse and worse. After the eighth grade he ran away from home and lived in the cellars with the street boys.

The parents had hoped that Pasha's problems and glue sniffing would go away as he was getting older. When they faced the reality, it was easier for us to talk with them that the child needs guidance and boundaries.

After much effort, we were able to have Pasha return home and go back to school. He had alreay become used to the street life, where nothing was forbidden, and was seriously addicted to the glue.

Pasha is now on the ninth grade. We have seen him on the streets only a few times. When we asked: "Are you still sniffing glue?" he responded joyfully: "No, I'm in school!"

Yulik - Back to his Mother through the New Home Shelter

One of our assistants found the 10-year-old Yulik from the streets. The boy had run away from home for the fifth time and stayed on the streets for a week.

The mother said that she was unable to get him to obey. We decided to take Yulik into our new home shelter with three other children.

The boy really was difficult and had temper tantrums, but then started to calm down. We were also in constant contact with the mother.

Yulik started to visit his home during the weekends, and he finally told us wanting to return home. After the weeks away from home, the mother felt very dear to him!

Translated by Jari Vesterinen, Jamtrex Language Services