Oksana Grigorieva was in Belarus last week to visit families affected by the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 with the Chernobyl Children's Project International.
Along with founder Adi Roche, she visited the Vesnova Children’s Asylum, where 150 children with various degrees of intellectual and physical disability live a much improved quality of life through CCPI’s medical and therapeutic care and building program.
On the grounds of Vesnova, she visited Belarus’ first independent living program for disabled young adults. This ground breaking program embodies CCPI’s mission to make orphanages a thing of the past. The terrace of homes was built by CCPI volunteers, and funded through private donors and fund raising efforts. The young men were delighted to meet Oksana — who, like them, speaks Russian — and tell her their impressive personal stories of struggle and survival.
The team stopped at the Soltanovka asylum for adults, where intellectually disabled adults now live in dignity thanks to the labor of volunteer builders and funds raised by the annual Pfizer Cycle for Chernobyl.
Finally, Oksana and Adi visited 40 student police who were in Zhytkovichi to build a “Home of Hope.” On Friday, with the work completed, 10 children rescued from orphanages moved in with parents to a loving home of their own.
Read the full account of Oksana’s visit, and see more photos, by clicking here.
Source: Chernobyl Children International
