ADOPT UKRAINE BLOG IS OUT NOW!!!

It was not long time ago when we last have talked about creating a blog for ILDC project Adopt Ukraine. We are happy to announce that it’s out and now you can access it either through this blog by clicking on the link on the right site of ILDC blog or just visit www.adoptukraine.blogspot.com . We hope you will like it and enjoy following the updates on the project activities and hear some stories about families that Adopt Ukraine is working with!

MORE FROM THE CONFERENCE!!!

EVENT THAT WE WILL NEVER FORGET!!!

ONE OF THOSE GREAT MOMENTS WE WAITED FOR SO LONG.

This was not just an event. I would say it was historical event that may bring great change in the lives of many children in Ukraine.

Over 500 people gathered together at a conference in Kiev all committed to seeing a Ukraine Without Orphans in 2015. Hard to think or even imagine of this could have been possible, but many believe it is. We believe and hope that Ukraine can lead the former USSR in showing others how to divert children from orphanages.

This great event was not just a conference but rather a challenge for churches, NGO’s and parents to get involved and take on the heart of the orphan. Today we share the hope and the passion to see a mobilized partnership of NGO's joining together and creating a NEW REALITY for children waiting for families - for children who would otherwise be quickly placed into an orphanage.

CAN TRAINING BE TOO FUN???

Many people say or at least think that training is something boring and something to be endured. Well this people could be very wrong if they attended one of ILDC trainings in Ukraine.

We had a superb training conducted by our professional experts in child welfare and great friends of ILDC David and Jayne Schooler. Around 20 people attended this training. Most of them were adoptive parents and some social workers.The topic was Wounded Children, Healing Homes, How Traumatised Children Impact Adoptive Families.

The attendees enjoyed the training and had their questions answered. Next step for them will be to apply what they have learned at this training.We all know that it may not be easy for them but one thing is certain, this people are heroes and now they have the right tools to do their best for the children they have chosen to love and care.


This video can show you that training can be fun!

UPDATE ON KYRGIZ VISIT

As it has already been mentioned before in our blog , ILDC hosted guests from Kyrgyzstan for a week. The group studied the child welfare system in Ukraine in order to better understand the potential to divert children from orphanages .

ILDC staff and Kirghiz colleagues had a very productive time in Kiev as the result of the organized study tour of child welfare system here. These Kirghiz leaders were given the opportunity to visit leading NGO organizations in child welfare like Fathers House Foundation, Sun Shine Children Center, and ILDC partners Every Child Ukraine.

The second part of the study tour inlcuded state organizations like Kiev City Children Services, Brovary City Social Services and State Social Services in their head office in Kiev.

For the ILDC staff it was a great experience to learn more about Kirghiz colleagues and their work. As the result of this new partnership we discovered a great opportunity to start an exchange of experience project between our two countries.

ILDC has already accomplished writing a proposal to one the grant organizations. We hoping that after our proposal is approved we will initiate a new study tour to Ukraine in larger scale for 12 professionals of NGOs and Kirghiz state Representatives.

The second phase of the project will be an organized conference for child welfare professionals and child welfare state Representatives in Kyrgyzstan.

Let us hope that this attempt succeeds and our Kirghiz colleagues will be successful in their efforts to reform Kirghiz child welfare.

We have one common goal and one common dream to see our countries without orphans.

Let God help us.

OUR BROCHURES ARRIVED

We as ILDC team want to announce of our brochures been printed in two languages, English and Ukrainian. All of them arrived today and we can put one more mark on our to do list for the preparations for the conference "Ukraine without orphans" which will take place in Kiev this week. As you can see on our faces, we are very excited and would like to thank our supporters for sponsoring this publishing.

We thank Ruby and Lynn Johnston and IHS for helping us with editing and publishing the brochure.

CHILD PSYCHOLOGISTS ARE TRAINED TO HELP FOSTER AND ADOPTIVE FAMILIES

ILDC had a great weekend on the 23rd of October conducting long-awaited training on the book: "Telling The Truth to Your Adopted or Foster Child" for social workers, psychologists and child welfare specialists. The training was a great success. We had more than 40 people present at the training. The participants found the topic to be relevant and very useful in their work settings. They had a wonderful opportunity for in-depth discussion and had lots of practical exercises on this topic.

About 1/3 of the participants were from Russia. They got very interested in the opportunity of this kind of training in their country. We hope to develop partnerships in Russia in the near future.

The professional approach to the training was very appreciated! We would like to share our gratitude to Ruby Johnston for conducting the training and Jayne Schooler for writing this wonderful book.

Every participant received a copy of the book "Telling the Truth to Your Adopted or Foster Child" and four volumes of the "Field Guide to Child Welfare" written by one of ILDC founders Judith S. Rycus and Ronald C. Hughes, IHS. All participants were very excited to get this material.

LESS THEN 2 WEEKS AWAY FROM THE CONFERENCE UKRAINE WITHOUT ORPHANS

Its only less than two weeks away from the conference "Ukraine Without Orphans" which will take place in Kiev, Ukraine. Over 500 people will participate at the conference and we are as ILDC team very excited and look forward to this great event. Today we finally received our banners which is one more important detail in preparation for the conference. It is a great tool for exposure of our work in Ukraine in order to present the work of ILDC and its' significance in Ukrainian child welfare.

We want to thank Lynn and Ruby Johnston for contributing into production of the banners and continued support of our organizational growth.

SIGNING A CONTRACT WITH A NATIONAL ILDC TRAINER

ILDC has signed a contract with a National trainer Elena Andruhovich for training module 6 of Case Worker Core training program in Kriviy Rig city on November 8 - 10 for social workers and trainers of city social service of Kriviy Rig.

We as a team are very excited that our National trainer's pool is growing, trainers are becoming more experienced in training ILDC programs in child welfare. Best practice is being trained to child welfare workers in Ukraine.

Case Worker Core program was kindly provided to ILDC by one of our founders - Institute for Human Services, Ohio USA

GREAT THINGS TO LEARN

Training with Nan Beeler from IHS, Ohio.

Child welfare professionals in Ukraine received great opportunity to improve the quality of training programs which will be developed for child welfare system in Ukraine. Curriculum development training was conducted by ILDC with participation of international expert Nan Beeler from IHS, Ohio USA in September 2010 in Kiev, Ukraine. Thirty child welfare professionals and trainers attended the training. Participants emphasized the importance and relevance of this training of this particular training for building capacity of child welfare in Ukraine in present time. A lot of them claimed that this was first time that they attended training for such topic.

Training participants at the end of the training received a copy of the Field Guide written by Judith Rycus and Ron Hughes as a gift from ILDC and IHS.

ILDC thanks IHS and Nan Beeler for the granted opportunity and for contribution into capacity building of Ukrainian child welfare.