Russia

I decided to back track a little. Chase and I went to Russia in March with Global Aid Network (where I work). We visited orphanages, baby houses, rehab centers, and churches. It was an incredible experience. I realized that most of our family hasn't seen the pic's from the trip, so here are a few. Enjoy!

This is Chase's favorite orphan. This young lady is 18 and is about to be kicked out of the orphanage due to her age. She has been very abused and doesn't touch men. You can see from the picture that she clung onto to Chase! We were told that this has never happened before. She was very sweet and didn't talk much. Chase loves telling the story so you'll have to ask him more about it later.
We handed out Carepacks to several orphanages. We got a chance to love on the kids which was so much fun. This little girl was taken with Chase....but who wouldn't be?
This is a men's drug, alcohol, and gambling rehab center. It is a Christian home and the men have to commit to 9 months of rehab. We had an INCREDIBLE worship time with them! I helped lead worship and we sang "Shout to the Lord" which they knew in Russian. Half of the room sang in Russian and the other half sang in English. I had chills the entire time. It was just a small glimpse of what heaven will be like!
This was one of our interpreters. She is in college, a strong believer, and a GREAT interpreter.

This pic was at the baby house. Chase had the camera and we ended up in two different groups. It was SO sad to see so many infants and toddlers in those conditions. Many of them had illnesses or disabilities that would be such a simple fix in the U.S. but because the orphanage cannot afford the right medicine or surgery, many of them will die.

This was one of my favorite visits. Chase and I did a home visit with to a grandma's house. We brought her some food and sat down for a visit. She served us tea and cakes. She was SO precious! She was SOOO excited to have Americans in her home!

This was another interpreter, Andre. He was our groups interpreter more times then not. He is a freshman in college and is a great musician. He played for me on several occasions. We got to know him and his family pretty well.