“Shoes for Orphan Souls”
When he was still living, Dad would have referred to the following story as “divine coincidence,” or perhaps more accurately a series of them. He and June knew before he died last May that Cheryl and I were coming to Latvia, but it was sometime during the summer when we received a letter from June, now 92 and living in a retirement home, with a small newspaper clipping about her hometown, rural Saegertown, PA church collecting shoes for orphan children in Riga, Latvia. We were busy with last minute packing and planning and I filed the information thinking there might be a chance to follow up once we got to the country. How many orphanages could there be in the capitol city of a country with a population of just over 2 million?
It took a few weeks to get acquainted with Riga and get settled in my teaching position. Eventually I made a few unsuccessful inquiries here and then asked June, during a SKYPE phone call, for more information. Where, exactly, were the shoes to go? What orphanages? Were people from her church delivering the shoes? June got back in contact with her church friend. It turned out the project was called “Shoes for Orphan Souls.” A Christian radio station in Northeastern Ohio, WCRF, sponsored the drive. By now it was early November. I emailed the station and received a reply from the station manager indicating their local DJ, Paul Carter, was already in Latvia with a group delivering shoes—no idea about schedule or location, but Paul would probably respond to email. I emailed Paul Carter on a Tuesday in early November. He responded on Wednesday—“I’m here with a group of 30 people, staying at the Radisson in Riga with two full days of visits and meeting before a very early Saturday a.m. departure for home.” In the meantime I had searched the internet for “Shoes for Orphan Souls” and found Buckner International, a Dallas-based, Baptist-affiliated international social service agency with programs in many parts of the world, including Latvia. I was busy with a presentation Wednesday and Thursday but went to the Radisson early Friday a.m., before the final day of visits and meetings for the visiting group. I met for about 15 minutes with Paul Carter and left a little disappointed. The meeting was cordial enough, but…..nothing more—no introduction to other members of the group or staff, no invitation to join them. We did exchange business cards and went our separate ways. The group consisted of 30 volunteers from all over the U.S., although apparently none from the Saegertown church. They paid their own way to spend two weeks doing Vacation Bible School-like programs at several orphanages in and around Riga—doing arts and crafts, sharing stories, playing games, and delivering shoes. End of story? Not quite!
Several weeks later, toward the end of November, I received an email out of the blue from a woman who is the director of the Buckner-affiliated foster care program in Riga inviting me to visit their office. Paul Carter had handed her my business card just before he boarded the plane for home. She’s enthusiastic and committed, actively involved with local and international efforts for positive change in child welfare. She, Dace Rence, came to talk to one of my social work practice classes about her programs and her efforts, along with others, to move Latvia from a model of moderately large children’s homes to smaller group homes and foster care. I asked about visiting a children’s home and offered to provide a workshop if there was interest.
This week, on Wednesday and Friday, Cheryl and I traveled with an interpreter to two sites out of Riga where I presented half-day workshops on “Preventing Child Sexual Abuse.” More than 60 foster parents, social workers, teachers, and red cross volunteers attended the first in a very rural community of 700 inhabitants. Forty-five foster parents, social workers, law enforcement/police and NGO staff came to the second. The pictures help tell this part of the story. Dad, I’m sure, is smiling knowingly.
Mar 2, 2008
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