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“Has not my soul grieved for the poor?”
Job 30:25b (NIV)
In January we received an alarming email from Monika Mahr, Director of CASA Grace in Oradea, Romania. She told us that because of decreased income, the funds at CASA had depleted to the point that if funding wasn’t received immediately, they would have to close their doors.
Following on from this email, we were able to send CASA some emergency funding to see them through January and February, but the dire financial situation for CASA continues. I went to visit Monika in February, and she showed me the great need that still exists in this European Union country. As far as I can tell, not much has changed for the poor and marginalised, particularly those living in rural areas. It saddened me to see such poverty in a part of the world exalted as 'wealthy', and the irony is that EU membership has made no difference to these people, but CASA does! Eurovangelism has supported CASA Grace in Oradea since it started 13 years ago. The small team dedicate their working lives to trying to improve local communities through direct material assistance, emotional support, training and advocacy. This is provided through four distinct yet interrelated departments: 'Vocational Training Centre' (tailoring and computing); 'Briana Maternal Centre' (for single mums and babies); 'Kingdom Kids' (therapy for disabled children); and 'Families in Difficulty'.
Floare lives in a tiny and crumbling one room house with her eldest grandson, Grigore (9). Across the muddy path are her daughter and three other grandchildren in their tiny two room house, although they only use one of these rooms because of having to heat it. When I asked Floare whether joining the EU has made any difference to her life today, she answered immediately with an emphatic “Yes!” Why? Because “prices have gone up but the money stays the same”. On further investigation I discover that whilst the price of food has risen between 30% and 50%, child benefit has only increased by approximately 50 pence. This family of six live on an income of £125 per month, so after paying taxes and bills, there isn’t much left for food.
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It is not uncommon for the children in this family to have a meal of water and sugar. The water, by the way, is from the village well. Whilst a community project two years ago put water pipes into everybody's yards, the cost of connecting the water means that many families now have an expensive but useless ornament outside their window, covered over by tarpaulin to stop the rust.
This was CASA's second visit to the family, who live in a village about 10km from Oradea. CASA will be using their holistic approach to help stabilise this situation and that of many other families, encouraging and teaching them how best to improve their life circumstances for a more positive future. |
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Family planning advice will be one more thing offered by CASA, who have already provided food, powdered milk (mum is malnourished so can't breastfeed), pushchair, clothes and hygiene products. In addition to this, CASA team member, Marilena, is now helping them to access the vaccinations that the twin babies need - so far, the doctor has not visited the house because he knows they are too poor to give him a financial 'gift', yet because of this very problem, they cannot afford to travel to the doctors. The hope that CASA are bringing to this family is obvious, and in addition to the material and emotional support available, Marilena is hoping that Grigore will be one of the children to go on this year's summer camp!
After finishing my visit with Floare and her family, we continue in the snow for a further 50kms to a village that is totally reliant on wells for water. When I ask Monika what the approximate percentage of those with access to clean piped water within their own homes (or yards) is, she tells me “0%”. I am incredulous, but she assures me that her statistics are correct.
CASA work with many families in this village and today we visited two of them. Both families live in awful conditions - one room, stone floors, crumbling walls, little furniture. Yet both homes had very obviously been 'graced' with CASA's assistance.
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The storage boxes under Florian and Ileana's semi-collapsed single bed have been re-used, bearing the familiar 'Eurovangelism' name on the sides. Their grandson, Marius (4), after getting over his initial shyness, proudly shows me the cuddly toy he has received through our Gift Catalogue, and he looks wonderful in his new winter coat that Monika has taken for him (pictured left), again from the Gift Catalogue. It seems that one of the few possessions not provided by CASA, is the photo of Marius' mother, who died of cancer not long after he was born. Dad has never been on the scene, so CASA will continue to work with this family in the future, providing a parenting and hygiene course for grandma and grandad, lots of emotional counselling, and more practical help.
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Similar help is being given to Viorica and her family, living in their one room dilapidated house with the bed that has no mattress, the one children's chair which is collapsing, and the tiniest metal chest I have ever seen, which must contain all the clothes belonging to the family of three. The outdoor toilet does not look inviting in this kind of weather - the hole in the ground is only surrounded by three fences, leaving the entrance completely open to the elements. Our visit is surrounded with joy and tears. Tears as the pent up emotions come pouring out with the care and listening ear of Marilena, and joy and laughter as food is given and the love of God becomes evident to all in this simple visit.
Somebody does care. That is the message being given every day by the team at CASA. But the future of CASA is in jeopardy, and I shudder to think what this would mean for so many other families as well as Floare, and Marius, and Viorica. On this day, I saw that whilst the EU has made no difference to so many rural families, CASA, quite clearly, does.
Sally Macpherson |
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| How you can help |
Please Help
To help us keep CASA Grace open so they can continue with their amazing work - demonstrating God’s love to those living in dreadful poverty in Romania.
Please designate your gift CASA.
For further prayer requests please see the March Prayer Diary online.
You can also visit our Prayer Blog for immediate requests. Click Here. |
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