Published: November 03, 2009 10:13 am      

Youth help overseas orphans

The middle school and high school youth groups at St. John the Evangelist Church in Goshen were moved to help children in orphanages overseas after watching a presentation by parishioner Loren Hartman, who has been involved with Crosspath Ministry for several years bringing wheelchairs to Kyrgyzstan.

The youth raised approximately $500 for the cause.

“The kids are very interested in service and they wanted to serve overseas in some way,” said Sara Knight, youth director at St. John’s. “They were very moved by the kids who had handicaps and disfigurements.

“Kids are so smart — they thought as well as donating money for the wheelchairs, why not donate so the mothers could get the nutritional supplements they need so these sorts of things wouldn’t happen.”

Hartman is a physical therapist and he left Sunday for his third trip to Kyrgyzstan with this ministry. Kyrgyzstan is in central Asia, next to China and two countries north of Afghanistan. It is an Islamic country and was part of the former Soviet Union.

This trip he will take 14 wheelchairs and five walkers. He and another therapist, Kevin Eby, will be visiting two orphanages — Belvodsky and Tokmok, both state orphanages.

It is Hartman’s first visit to Tokmok, but he has been to Belvodsky before. He said that he has to be granted permission from the state to visit the orphanages.

“In order to talk to them about Christianity you have to first develop trust and have them remember you,” he said.

Andrew Wallach, who assists with the youth groups at St. John’s was recently married and asked the kids to donate to the ministry in lieu of a wedding gift for he and his wife, Ani. He said he knew Sarah would suggest the kids chip in to get him a wedding gift and he thought the need was much greater for the orphans than for he and his wife.

“So I decided instead of more stuff, why not give something so much more to people halfway around the world,” Wallach said. “They were happy to do it and were 100 percent behind the idea.”

Hartman said $5,000 was raised for this trip, including the money raised by the youth. The kids are not done, though. Knight said the middle school group and the high school group are having a “war” to see which group can raise the most money.

“It’s good motivation for them,” she said.

Hartman said on this trip the focus will be on educating volunteers and parents how to work with the kids.

There is no therapy available and the kids are treated as though there is no rehabilitation for them — something Hartman has been striving to change. He and Eby will be gone for two weeks.