Today the players worked hard on the courts to see if they could make it into the winner's circle.
The "round robin" style of play had men and women playing together in doubles and many people commented on how much they enjoyed this concept of men and women playing together in a tournament.
THE WINNERS!
And after the great event, cake was cut and served with a smile!
Registration started bright and early with volunteers arriving at 7:00am to prepare and our first player arrived at 7:40am. After registering, they were given a gift of a tennis towel and "Strokes Against Hopelessness" tournament t-shirt.
Sometime after 9:00am, we got started but not before David and Leisya opened the event and introduced Illiya. 
Illiya came to ChildRescue as an orphan, living on the streets, and wanted by the police. He gave his testimony and explained how the love and care he received by those who work at the center helped change and save his life.
Afterwards the players lined up with our special guests and sponsors and children from ChildRescue officially "hit" the first "Stroke" against hopelessness and the games began! I worked with two different cameras this evening to take photos during our "Strokes Against Hopelessness" tournament drawing. Here's some quick shots of the event which was graciously hosted by the US Ambassador William Taylor.
Here's David and Lesiya, (with Oleg translating) opening the event and talking about how this tournament will help support ChildRescue and Ukrainian street children.
Lesiya drew player's numbers and the Ukrainian Tennis Club officials matched who would play against each other for the first round.
Jane (our star volunteer) kept the official scoreboard of players.
Our core group of leaders for our tennis tournament fundraiser, "Strokes Against Hopelessness" needs no office. We usually meet in the schoolroom at the rehabilitation center but we have had the last couple of meetings at David's apartment. This photo was taken before the player's lists was separated from the reception list and we got a little too punchy for our own good. We are in good shape for the tournament and I will post more photos after the event.
Blogger MoldovAnn, who is a Program Officer for the United Nations Volunteer Program in Ukraine, offers some interesting thoughts regarding what can happen when NGO's become "feel good" programs that create dependency in children versus helping to solve a real humanitarian problem. She uses the example of children who are still receiving aid as a result of the Chernobyl disaster. You can read her post HERE.
I have seen this problem in ministries and churches as well. A program is started through a church or group of well meaning people but over time the needs and social issues change and no one ever thinks to sit down and analyze what is currently needed to solve the problem in relation to what is currently happening in the society.
While I have seen many children turn their lives around with just a little bit of love and hope poured into their lives, others sometimes fall at the side of the road.
Last week I heard the news that one of the teenage boys I used to work with, Stash, had died of a drug overdose. Sadly, I wasn't surprised at this news. He had disappeared a while before I stopped working with this particular group of youth and I had feared the worse for him. He was about 18 or 19 years old.
Stash was a very talented artist and it was obvious that this artistic gift also was a weakness for him as he was very sensitive and emotional. These were traits that could have made him a success in regular life if he had pursued an artistic career, but these characteristics made surviving on the streets very difficult.
I remember many times when Tolik would take him aside and have serious talks with him. When I think about Stash and the others I worked with who are now adults, many still living on the streets or in prison, I find it difficult to accept that the few years time we had with them was probably the only positive influence they've ever had in their lives. It's an awesome and overwhelming thought.
While many people work hard to help these children, it is a reality check to realize that some will never make it. They end up at the side of the road of life. Literally.
Working with kids like Stash has been a test of faith for me. The Bible says, "My father and mother may abandon me, but the Lord will take care of me."....Psalm 27:10 (GNT) That is an amazing verse. God uses families to show children love, but many children never get that experience. I am convinced that God loves each and every street child and is ready to reveal himself to them if Christians choose to get involved in their lives. We need to be God's hands and feet in their lives and point them to Christ.
God used Stash in my life to teach me some things about my relationship with God and how God works and reveals himself to us as his children. I could never have learned these things without knowing Stash. For that, I will be forever grateful and will always remember him.
Last March, my friend and fellow missionary Marianna blogged about a special conversation with an HIV positive seven year old who has lived most of her life in an orphanage in Kyiv. Nadia expressed her faith in God and shared that she was praying for a mother. In Ukraine, it is hard enough to find adoptive or foster parents for healthy children, much less those who are HIV positive.
Nikolai Kuleba, the Director for Kyiv City Administration State Services for Children, ran a spot on television highlighting HIV positive children and the need for them to be adopted. One woman watched the TV program and found herself unable to sleep the entire night. She was moved by what she saw and felt that she must adopt Nadia. The next day she contacted the authorities to find out how to start the process.
God answered Nadia's prayers for a mother and she is now living in her new family and doing well.
ChildRescue and CrossRoads Foundation along with METRO, Cash and Carry and the support of the Ukrainian Tennis Club, will be hosting a charitable tennis tournament called, "Strokes Against Hopelessness."
It will be held 27-28th of October at the "Courts in Podil." The tournament drawing will be held the 26th at the US Ambassador's Residence in Podil.
To register online, visit www.childrescue.org.ua.
Today was an interesting day. I gave another one of my, "You have to make a choice whether you want to help street children or not" lectures. (Today's lecture was complete with a stack of photos showing children crawling out of the city's underground holes like ants.)
I usually end up giving these lectures in situations where someone is standing between a street child and something that child may need to survive. In other words, this person is a gatekeeper. If this person could just move to right or left just a little or adjust their thinking just tiny bit it could make the road of a child's life smoother or help change their entire future.
We need to pray for the gatekeepers.
The Christian Coalition for "At-Risk Children" will be meeting Wednesday, October 10th at 9:30am in Podil.
We will reconnect and decide the new person(s) in charge of coordinating the coalition for the next year.
Please email Gennady and Mina Podgaisky for more information and/or directions to the meeting at podgaisky@juno.com
