04 Aug Grigoriy and Rita at Fathers House in Kyiv Ukraine
Grigoriy and Rita are a couple of my Fathers House hero’s and I am so excited to tell their story
Grigoriy and Rita are a beautiful example of the families that sacrificially move into Fathers House with their own children, blend in several children who have been traumatized by abuse and abandonment, caring for them as their own as they experience rehabilitation and adoption.
I loved seeing Grigoriy’s strong yet gentle leadership in his family and seeing how ALL of his children love and adore him. Rita’s love and commitment is evident from the way she smiles while serving up endless plates of delicious food. Our Capturing Grace Team has never yet been hungry during our stay at Fathers House, sharing the table with this family of 10 was one of our favorite moments.
Grigoriy and Margarita joined FH last year in 2020 as host parents for their Family Care Program. Grigoriy has a wonderful history with Father’s House, where as a young adult himself, he shared his gifts and talents with those who were not that much younger. Using his guitar he taught them how to sing and worship the Lord.
Two decades later, Grigoriy stepped into a completely different role, but his desire to teach children something new and implement important life skills remained and became even stronger. He not only serves as a parent but also became the leader of the Fathers House greenhouses project. He naturally began to combine the two responsibilities and turned it into something really beautiful and fruitful!
He encourages children to use their free time from school and house chores to volunteer their time at the greenhouses, watching him and learning new trades; sowing, reaping, planting, cultivate the soil, etc. They often spend family time at the greenhouses, making BBQ and playing hide and seek.
Grigoriy and Rita have become a real blessing for FH with their big hearts to serve and creative ways to invest in the lives of these precious children.
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In 2017 I photographed at Father’s house and It did not take long to understand why Jodi Jackson Tucker, International director for Orphan Sunday calls this special place in Kyiv, holy ground.
Sitting across from Roman and his daughter Anastasia in 2017 during a 1 1/2 hour interview, I heard stories that stirred my heart. Roman’s experiences were filled with unmistakable God moments that ultimately changed the life of this Ukrainian medical doctor. I listened in awe about the glimpse God gave Dr. Korniyko in 1995 of what orphans in his own city were experiencing. Children hiding in abandoned buildings, running in gangs, begging on the streets for food, atrocities too unspeakable for me to say. Through this glimpse, God gave Roman a heart that beats for saving the lives of children who have nowhere else to turn.
Our return to capture this story on video is a dream come true.
Previous Fathers House stories on my blog
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