Daniel Centre

Danutz has now found work, so all the Daniel Centre lads are employed. 

The Renovation of the Depot is still being delayed by lack of people on the work force.  Many workers still leave Romania to seek their fortunes in Western Europe.

Only one older Ukrainian lady is left in the Daniel Centre apartment and she speaks only Ukrainian.

Balazs now begins his intense fortnight of wrapping up his report on how the first phase of Christian Aid money was used in the Ukraine.  Most of the internally displaced people (IDPs) have been housed in schools over the summer months.  Now that these schools are re-opening for the new academic year, all of these IDPs will become homeless and the challenge is now on how to best channel the Christian Aid money to help them.

Talita Kum

Expecting 77 children for their after-school activities when schools open again on September 5th, Adi is seriously considering having to relocate the TK1 children to the TK2 building because of the anticipated cost increases in heating and lighting the buildings.

Daniel Centre

All of the Daniel Centre young men now have jobs except Danutz who is physically handicapped.  The three young men in prison are inside for 1 year and 9 months but could get 25% off for good behaviour.  Soreen, who has been relocated to another prison at his own request, is still in regular touch with the Daniel Centre and would like to come back there on his release. 

The second phase of Christian Aid money for Ukraine, starting in early September, is to be channelled through Balazs for Blythswood.  Balazs then has an intense fortnight of wrapping up his report on how the first phase of the money was used.  Most of the new money will be distributed to internally displaced people as cash rather than as goods.

Talita Kum

Adi is preparing for the schools going back in at the beginning of September and expecting 77 children for their after-school activities.  They will be keeping 4 girls who now have reached the end of TK2.  About 90% of the children they look after are from the Roma or gypsy community.

Daniel Centre

Robi is not keen to stay long with the supermarket.  Soreen, the most positive of the prison 3, asked to be relocated to another prison to be away from Alex’s negativity.  He is in touch with the Daniel Centre and would like to come back there on his release. 

An older Ukrainian lady and another younger lady and daughter have moved into the Daniel Centre apartment but the older is making life difficult for the younger one.

The first phase of Christian Aid money to three mainly Baptist NGOs in the Carpathia, Odessa and Ternopil areas of the Ukraine is set to finish at the end of August.  The second phase then begins and £1 million of Christian Aid money will be channelled through Balazs for Blythswood over the following 12 months.  The process is becoming less hectic but there is still a lot of pressure on Balazs.  They are adding a new freelance consultant in London with a lot of experience in these areas.

Talita Kum

Adi is preparing for the children’s summer camps but has had a visit from someone responsible for the use of EU funds in Romania who has told him that no funding will be available for TK3 and TK4.  So this project has been terminated by the mutual agreement of Blythswood and the EU funders so that the relationship remains good for possible future funding.

Daniel Centre

Robi has found work at a nearby supermarket, Ionuz is still inactive, had to be put out for a few days and has returned quite chastened.  Dani too moved out with friends for a few days but has now moved back in.

The Ukrainian refugee family in the Daniel Centre apartment are now preparing to return to the Ukraine.

Balazs is very taken up with channelling Christian Aid money to three mainly Baptist NGOs in the Carpathia, Odessa and Ternopil areas of the Ukraine.  The first tranche of money – £420,000 – has already been forwarded, but this is only the beginning of a 3-year programme.  Pray for the NGOs as they handle this amount of money and for Balazs as he is responsible for keeping them accountable.

He has a 10-hour drive from Cluj to the Ukraine to meet with representatives of the NGOs, speaks no Ukrainian and has to rely on a translator.

Talita Kum

Because Balazs has been spending so much time with the Ukraine connection, he has not been in touch with Adi in Jimboliya for an update on his activities there.

Daniel Centre

Robi has successfully found work at the nearby supermarket, but Ionuz is still inactive, had to be put out for a few days and has returned quite chastened.  Dani too moved out with friends for a few days but has now moved back in.

The Ukrainian refugee family in the Daniel Centre apartment are now preparing to return to the Ukraine.

Balazs is very taken up with channelling Christian Aid money to three mainly Baptist NGOs in the Carpathia, Odessa and Ternopil areas of the Ukraine.  The first tranche of money – £420,000 – has already been forwarded but this is only the beginning of a 3-year programme.  Pray for the NGOs as they handle this amount of money and for Balazs as he is responsible for keeping them accountable.

He has a 10-hour drive from Cluj to the Ukraine to meet with representatives of the NGOs, speaks no Ukrainian and has to rely on a translator.

Talita Kum

Because Balazs has been spending so much time with the Ukraine connection , he has not been in touch with Adi in Jimboliya for an update on his activities there.

Daniel Centre

Luisa came online today to be introduced to me and a couple of the Daniel Centre lads are in phone contact with Alex, Soreen & Ovidio in prison.  They will be able to visit them soon and take in food parcels that Luisa is preparing for them.   The expected new arrival has materialised – his name is Robi and he is in the process of applying for work at the nearby supermarket.

The new Ukrainian refugee family in the Daniel Centre apartment show little sign of wanting to learn Romanian or English and have little meaningful contact with Balazs.

Balazs and Finlay MacKenzie were able to visit churches in Ukraine but encountered issues in channelling Christian Aid and Blythswood money through them.  They were put in touch, however, with a Dutch-sponsored Christian NGO in the Ukraine which is eager and available to interact with them.

Talita Kum

Because Balazs has been visiting Scotland recently and also spending a lot of time getting involved in the Ukraine, he has not been in touch with Adi in Jimboliya for an update on his activities there.

Daniel Centre

Development work at the Depot has gone well and is almost ready.

Luisa has now contacted Alex, Soreen & Ovidio in prison and is working on getting food parcels to them as prison food is minimal.  Luisa continues to be very effective in getting the lads more co-operative in the Centre which, with a new arrival expected, will be back up to capacity.

The Ukrainian refugees who were in the Daniel Centre apartment have now returned to the Ukraine and a new family has come to replace them.

Balazs, along with Finlay MacKenzie, Blythswood’s Elpis Foundation in Romania and churches in Ukraine, is now building up a team to handle the money channelled through Christian Aid and Blythswood for reconstruction and for internally displaced persons in Ukraine.

Talita Kum

TK1 and TK2 are now working normally again, have added extra-curricular activities and are preparing their children’s fair for the town onsite at TK1 on June 1st this year.  Adi is also preparing a summer camp and an HIV camp and possibly a children’s outing in Austria.

Daniel Centre

Development work continues at the Depot.

Luisa is still seeking with contact Alex, Soreen & Ovidio in prison and André, with his own case still under investigation, is now proud to be working at Carrefour.  Cipri is having tensions in his work at H & M.

The Ukrainian refugees are still in the Daniel Centre apartment, and 3 more – a severely traumatised grandmother, mother and 13-year-old daughter – are now in an apartment owned by Balazs’s wife Agnes.

Danny and night worker Sergiu are well again.

Balazs has been approached by Christian Aid to use their DEC (Disaster Emergency Committee) aid for the Ukraine.  He has to draw up plans for using this funding in partnership with Ukrainian churches for reconstruction and helping internally displaced people there – an even more complicated project than applying for EU funding.

Talita Kum

Adi has shut one of their supporting shops in Jimboliya, has had no update on their EU funding but continues to run the Talita Kum houses as normal.

Daniel Centre

Development work is now progressing more quickly at the Depot.

Three of the Centre lads – Alex, Soreen & Ovidio –  are now in prison for past crimes, particularly disappointing for the latter two as they had been getting their act together more recently at the Centre with the counsellor, Luisa.  A fourth lad, André, is still being investigated for his role in the vandalising of a vending machine and could also face prison, but also preparing to work at Carrefour.  Cipri has also found work at H & M, so of the current 6 residents, only Danutz who is physically handicapped is without work.

The Ukrainian refugees at the apartment, 3 ladies (1 a grandmother) and 3 children are currently settled.  The father in Ukraine has now returned to their home town.

Balazs’ deputy Danny and their night worker Sergiu have both been off sick, but Luisa has been a really good addition to the Centre staff.

Talita Kum

No new update from Talita Kum this month.

Daniel Centre

Development work is progressing slowly at the Depot.

One of the lads at the Centre who had joined the Centre in 2021 for only a few days before going to Germany had returned recently to Cluj and asked the Centre to get an ID card for him.  When the Centre manager took him to the government office, Alex was arrested as they left.  He had been a wanted man, on the run for theft.  Now 3 other lads at the Centre are running scared, all having been charged with theft in the past and appealing.  If they lose the appeal, they will go to prison like Alex.

Some of the Ukrainian refugees at the apartment have now moved on to Germany, but have been replaced by 3 ladies, 2 children and a grandmother.  The father of the children is a driver in the Ukraine and would like his family to now return to their home town there, but his wife still sees it as too dangerous.

Romeo, the 1 Centre lad to have moved out to his own apartment under an EU scheme, is doing well.  Istvan has now left his relatives, but they have sent him to Germany to work and he is in a mess there.  Daniel has suspended his studies till September but is working hard on a construction site in the meantime.

Talita Kum

Blythswood are still raising money for the TK3 and TK4 project but would prefer to give up on the EU grant which would have tied them to the current Council building.  That has all kinds of issues with the current Council in Jimboliya, so the present strategy would be to move the TK3 and TK4 project into the TK2 building.