Newsletter January 2008

Dear friends,

We’d like to tell you a little bit about what has been happening at Children's Hospice in January. Thanks to the help of our friends, we were able to gather some wonderful gifts for all our patients and arrange a real feast for them. You can find more details about the gifts and the holidays on the Children's Hospice websites: www.kidshospice.info and www.kidshospice.org
Unfortunately, we had some losses during the New Year's holidays. Xenia B., Anastasia K. and Arina T. passed away. We remember them, and we grieve together with their families.

The Circus, a Hockey Game and the Bowling Alley

During the holidays our little patients visited a circus. The children were enthralled by the trained animals, clowns and acrobats.

In January, some patients were able to go to the hockey championship that took place in St. Petersburg. Many boys, together with their fathers, were able to attend the game thanks to the generosity of Mr. Sergey M. Izotov, director of the Ice Palace, who gave us tickets. Thanks also to our employees who kindly assisted the children in wheelchairs.

Equally interesting to the children was a trip to the bowling alley. This was their first visit to a bowling alley, and everything was new to them: special footwear, tracks, and the interior of the bowling center. Amidst jokes and laughter, we learned to hit the pins and then arranged a team competition.


Visiting the Horses

Many of our children are keen on horses and we arrange regular trips to a stable just for them. The children can look after the horses and feed them.
Little Nastya is very fond of horses. Everywhere she goes she has with her a pink horse toy. After treatment at the Institute of Oncology, Nastya became unsociable and shy. After entering the stable, she changed before our eyes; she began to smile and no longer clung to her mother. She started to interact with the other children, and she even comforted another girl who was afraid to get on a horse. The children each have their favorite horse and wait impatiently for the next trip to the stable.

Children’s Hospice Volunteer Program

As the number of hospice patients grows at a constant rate, there is a necessity to engage new volunteers. We plan to establish a volunteer’s service to ensure better care for the children in our charge. In January, we’ll hold the first seminar in our volunteer training program.

About the Hospice – Michael D. Sobolev

In this issue of our bulletin, we‘d like to tell you about Michael D. Sobolev, the chief of our psychological service. Michael has systematized the work of our psychologists. He also holds monthly training seminars for the hospice employees. The staff can count on receiving good advice from him on difficult cases.
Michael has also offered some interesting projects of social and psychological rehabilitation to the parents of our patients. He is always ready to tell an amusing story or a joke and to pay a compliment. We all enjoy working with him.
Please share this newsletter with your friends, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Thank you for your attention and cooperation.

Yours faithfully,

Fr. Alexander Tkachenko, Children’s Hospice, January 2008
Detski Hospis/Children’s Hospice